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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, 

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UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 



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THE SOUL WINNER, 



- - BY - - 

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REV, EDWARD 0, GUERRANT, D. D, 



He tlpat X/viip^et^ souls is Wise." — r roV. xi, 30. 

\ Copyright Secured, 1896. 
v*\»j v^e. o. guerrant, wllmore, ky. 



LEXINGTON, KY. 
JOHN B, MORTON S> CO,, 




1*p 



To my sainted mother, Mary Beaufort Howe Owings, 

Who first taught me the love of Jesus, 

and 

To my beloved wife, Mary Jane DeVault, 

Who faithfully helps me to serve Him, 
This little volume is affectionatelv inscribed. 



PREFACE. 



The gladdest tidings that ever eame to this lost world was 
the Evangel. The most welcome messenger to every human 
heart is the Evangelist who brings this good news. To help 
him tell it to all people is the sole object of this little book. 

The angel who brought the message to the shepherds on 
Judea's hills has thousands of humble and faithful followers, 
who sometimes need help. That God will bless this humble 
effort in so holy a ministry is my prayer. 

Neither the praise or blame of the book is altogether my 
own. I cheerfully divide it with my friends. Some good 
(and, I trust, wise) men, in whose judgment I have confi- 
dence, repeatedly urged its preparation. 

From the beginning of my ministry I have felt the want 
of some such volume and found none. I found books about 
evangelistic work, its needs, its importance, its greatness, its 
urgency, but none that told me how to do it. This is what I 
wanted. I had to go and learn it myself. How well I 
learned it this book will discover. 

It has been written "in the saddle," during the breathing- 
spells of an active ministry. Its preparation has extended 
over several years and over nearly every Southern State, 
writing as I had opportunity. It is almost entirely the result 
of my own experience in preaching the Gospel to all kinds of 
people, in all kinds of places. 

To it are added some "field notes" to illustrate the appli- 
cation of the rules taught by experience. Both of these could 



have been indefinitely extended ; but life is too short to read 
or write what is not necessary. 

I have sought to give the essence of twenty years ex- 
perience. If it has no other merit it will be brie^ 

It is not written for preachers alone, but for the people 
who love God and the souls of men. This is the last com- 
mand of Jesus, and the high vocation of every one who hears 
the Gospel, to go and tell it. None appreciate this so much 
as the preachers themselves. 

While it does not have or ask the endorsement of learned 
men or schools, it may not be amiss to say its humble author 
was converted under the preaching of such men as Stuart 
Robinson, Robert J. Breckinridge, John C. Young, and 
Edward P. Humphrey. He was educated by such teachers 
as Robert L. Dabney, Benjamin M. Smith, Thomas E. Peck, 
and Henry C. Alexander, and called to the Evangelistic 
work by the venerable Synod of Kentucky. 

If this volume is found to depart in any respect from the 
purity of their doctrine or the simplicity of their worship, I 
shall be both sorry and surprised. 

It is written for the glory of God in the salvation of men- 
This I believe will insure His acceptance. I trust it will 
secure that of His people. 

Belvoir. 

Wilmore, 

Jessamine County, 

Kentucky. 



CONTENTS. 



Page. 

Preface 3 

The Soul Winner 8 

The Great Soul Winner 1 1 

Who is the Preacher ... 18 

Baptism with the Holy Spirit 22 

How to Preach 28 

What to Preach 35 

The Preacher 42 

Closet Prayer 45 

Public Prayer 48 

Attitude in Prayer 51 

The Pastor's Part 54 

The Peoples' Part 58 

The Parent's Part 60 

The Morning Service 64 

The Evening Srrvice 67 

The Singing 70 

Visiting 73 

The Press 76 

Methods .... - 79 

The Children 81 

The Inquirer 84 

The Mourner's Bench , 87 

Polemics 89 

Concentration 91 

Patience 93 

Punctuality , 95 

The Mountain Work. 97 

The Organization of Churches. 102 

The Voice 105 

The Ushers 107 

The Sexton no 

The Weather 112 

When to Close ,...114 



FIELD NOTES. 

Page. 

Introduction « 1 19 

Report on Home Missions, 1877 121 

Report to Synod on Evangelistic Work, October, 1882 130 

Report to Synod on Evangelistic Work, October, 1883 140 

Report to Synod on Evangelistic Work, October, 1884 158 

Report to Synod on Evangelistic Work, October, 1885. 173 

Preaching Tour Through Eastern Kentucky 184 

Extract from Diary 19 1 

From the Wilderness Church 194 

From the Middle Fork . , 199 

Bear Creek 204 

From Hazard 206 

From the Troublesome 210 

The Ivy Patch 215 

On the Grape-vine 219 

To Big Creek 223 

The Lucky Thirteen 227 

Puncheon Camp '. . . . 230 

The Quicksand 233 

From the Cumberland Mountains 240 

Lost Creek 248 



note:. 

The form in which this book is written was determined 
by the following petition. It is addressed to these young 
men and to all others who are in the same blessed work of 
winning souls for Christ : 

Petition of Theological Class of the Central Uni- 
versity of Kentucky to Rev. E. O. Guerrant, D.D.: 
Reverend Sir — Having had the pleasure of listening to a 
series of lectures from you on the subject of " Evangelistic 
Work," and wishing to learn more of its nature and scope, 
we do respectfully petition you to give us, from your wide and 
successful experience, such information as you may deem 
sufficient concerning this much neglected branch of Church 
Work. We know the importance of this work, and feel that 
you will be willing to devote to us that portion of your time 
which will more thoroughly furnish us for this great work. 

Very respectfully, 

( J. H. VanLear, 
Committee \ R. E.« Douglass, 



D. Clay Lilly. 



March, 1892. 



THE SOUL WINNER. 



" He that winneth souls is wise" — Prov. xi, 30. 

Among the saddest and strongest evidences of our lost 
estate is the perversion of our judgment in spiritual things. 
The Scriptures call it blindness of mind. The result is that 
our greatest interests are ignored, and human and worldly 
affairs made to outweigh those heavenly and divine. The 
body is placed before the soul, money is put before religion, 
time before eternity, and men's favor before God's. 

The most cursory view of the world will persuade you of 
this fact. Men know many things, but do not know God, 
whom to know is life eternal. They are rich in many things, 
but not "rich toward God." They are busy in laying up 
treasures on earth, where they are lost, but neglect to lay 
them up in Heaven where alone they are safe. 

Of course, such men are not wise. The man who wins 
worldly fame, or wealth, or power for a few years, at great 
sacrifice, is a foolish man. God says it. These things bring 
no substantial or permanent enjoyment, and end in sorrow 
and shame. If you cannot find instances of it in your own 
observation, read the history of Alexander the Great, Caesar, 
Napoleon, and Hannibal, the greatest of Earth's captains. 
If you would look beyond, read the history of Dives. These 
were not wise men. God says it, and history and reason cor- 
roborate it. 

11 He that winneth souls is wise." That is the voice of 
Wisdom, the voice of God. It is not the wealth winner that 
is wise, nor the fame-winner, nor the pleasure-winner, but the 



THE SOUL WINNER. 9 

soul-winner that is truly wise. To that highest and holiest 
calling God invites you. It is as much greater as the soul is 
than the body ; as time is greater than eternity ; as God is 
greater than man. 

Try to solve the problem Jesus gave the Jews, "what 
shall it profit a man if he shall gain the whole world and lose 
his own soul?" The man who makes such 'an exchange' is 
bankrupt forever. The soul is greater than all worlds. 

The only great thing in the world is the human soul, for 
it is the only thing in the world ltke God, and He only is 
Great. God alone knows its infinite value. If you would 
know His estimate of a soul, go look at Calvary. That was 
the price of a soul ! To win this soul is your highest duty 
and your noblest achivement and your greatest glory. This 
soul is lost ; is alienated from God ; * taken captive by Satan 
at his will.' It must be won back, ("retaken" or "cap- 
tured") for God, its Maker, and Redeemer. 

It is the Host sheep' from the heavenly fold, and must be 
sought and won. If it is not, then it is lost forever, and no 
human pen or tongue can paint the horrors of such a fate. 
To win them back, God gave his only Son, and that Son gave 
His life. That they can be won, your own salvation is a 
proof; and millions of others, who have been won from death 
to life, from sin to holiness, from Satan to God, are witnesses 
to-day. Then be a soul winner. 

You have God's word for it that your labor shall not be 
in vain. " He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious 
seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his 
sheaves with him." He will give you ' souls for your hire,' 
and no wages in the universe are to be compared to this. 
In thus winning souls you not only do the highest service for 



10 THE SOUL WINNER. 

men, but secure the highest glory of God. This is the chief 
end of your creation and preservation. We are to live and 
labor and die for the glory of God. The man who does not, 
has made his life a failure. 

The soul winner then is the highest type of man. He 
lives for the highest interest of mankind and the greatest 
glory of God. It is the happiness and glory of angels in 
whcse presence there is joy over one sinner that repenteth. 

Besides, God promises special honors and rewards for 
soul winners. "Let hini know that he which converteth a 
sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, 
and shall hide a multitude of sins." 

A soul winner is a soul saver, and there is nothing in 
this universe to compare to such service. It is the highest 
glory of God, Himself, that He became '•Jesus the Savior of 
men ! Into this glorious and heavenly occupation He calls 
you, as co-laborers with himself, and promises you His divine 
presence and power even " to the end of the world." 

And when the end has come, and beyond the end of the 
world and time, He promises a glorious reward to the soul 
winner. "They that be wise shall shine as the brightness of 
the firmament ; and they that turn many to righteousness, as 
the stars, forever and ever." What more could ambition ask? 
What more could God give? But beyond all wealth of con- 
stellations is the gratitude of a saved soul ! Next to Jesus my 
Savior, I love my mother, who taught me to love Him, and 
those who helped to win me back to Him. 

If you would have this truest and noblest homage of a 
ransomed soul, go forth to win them, in his spirit who said, 

"I would rather win thee than God's youngest star, 
With teeming continents and seas of bliss." 



THE GREAT SOUL WINNER. 11 



THE GREAT SOUL WINNER. 



u This man receiveth sinners, and eateth with them." — Luke 15:2. 



I suppose, if either of us had been called upon to de- 
scribe God, we should have given a very different description 
to this dne. In nothing do men betray greater ignorance 
than in their conception of God and of Jesus Christ. 

One would suppose, if any men knew God and his Son, 
these Jews would be the men. For nearly two thousand 
years they had been his peculiar people. For more than 
fourteen hundred years they had enjoyed the written revela- 
tion of his will, and a description of his Son, who was to be 
their Saviour. But when he came, at the very time, in the 
very way, and at the very place, God said he would come, 
they did not know him, but rejected him as a Saviour, and 
crucified him as an impostor. 

He was not their kind of a God. They had very differ- 
ent notions of what a God should be, and what he really was. 
And we are no wiser yet. Though the world has made great 
advances in all other departments of knowledge, they are as 
ignorant of God as ever. And he might reprove us in the 
same language he used to the Jews thousands of years ago. 
" Thou thoughtest that /was altogether such a one as thyself; 
but I will reprove thee." 

Now, we have here a notable illustration of this miscon- 
ception of God's character, as exhibited in the life of his Son. 
Here we behold Jesus Christ in the faithful discharge of his 
mission as a Redeemer, a Saviour, teaching the way of life to 
sinners . 



12 THE SOUL WINNER. 

These educated Jews, "the scribes and Pharisees, mur- 
mured" because he was doing exactly what God sent him to 
do — save the lost! They did not recognize God's Son in that 
role. They had different notions of what a Son of God ought 
to be and to do. They thought he was keeping bad company 
for one who claimed the dignity of his mission, and the di- 
vinity of his birth. They measured infinite benevolence in 
their own selfish standard. They weighed i?ifinite condescen- 
sion in their own proud and haughty balances. They 
thought he was altogether such an one as themselves. 
Thank God they were mistaken ! Thank God we have no 
Pharisee, or scribe or man, for our God and Saviour ; but 
one as far above all men as the sun is above this earth ! 

Now. let us discover something of the true character of 
God as it is revealed to us in his Son Jesus Christ, who, you 
remember, is the Logos, the Word, the Revealer of his 
Father; for "God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto 
himself." He is our model Soul Winner. 

"Then drew near unto him all the publicans and sinners 
for to hear him : and the Pharisees and scribes murmured, 
saying, this man receiveth sinners, and eateth with them." 

I once asked a converted Jew, what kind of people were 
publicans and smners ? He answered that the sinners were 
the very worst people that infest large cities; abandoned 
people ; the sinners par excellence. The publicans were 
the renegade Jews who had entered into the employ of the 
Romans, their conquerers, as tax-gathers; and, lost to all 
sense of patriotism or humanity, used all the military power 
of the Roman Government to oppress and despoil their own 
countrymen. 



THE GREAT SOUL WINNER. 13 

Dr. Whitby in his commentary on this passage, says : 

That " publicans, gross sinners and heathen, were by 
the Scribes and Pharisees, judged unfit to be conversed with, 
even though it were with a design to reduce them from their 
evil courses ; they — thinking that God had cast off the care of 
them, and had no design to grant them repentence unto life." 

These were the men who drew near to Jesus — to hear 
him These were the men about whom the Scribes and 
Pharisees murmured, saying: ,c He receiveth sinners, and 
eateth with them." And he did! And that is the mystery 
of Godliness. 

Truly, it is a wonderful picture. Publicans and sinners 
in the presence of Him whom angels and archangels adore ! 
Publicans and sinners sitting down to eat with Him, who re- 
ceives the worship of Cherubim and Seraphim ! 

Says Dr. Brown : 

" Strange auditory for such a preacher ! In fact among 
all the marvels of this marvelous history, none is more mar- 
velous than the fact that the most sunken classes of society 
seem, as by some spell, to have been attracted to the holy 
harmless, undefiled One, the ' 'Separate from sinners " 
What could the secret of this be ? What, but the discovery 
in him, of a compassion for their case, against which they 
had found every other breast steeled !" 

"Abandoned of men, we had thought ourselves much 
more abandoned of God. Heaven and earth seemed alike 
shut against us, and we were ready to conclude that, as out- 
casts from both, we must live on, the wretched life we are 
living, and then lie down and die without hope. 

But compassion for the chief of sinners beams from that 



14 THE SOUL WINNER. 

eye, and streams forth from those lips. God is in that heart, 
heaven in that voice. " Never man spake like this man." 

"As he speaks, God himself seems to draw near to us, 
and say to us in accents of melting love, ' Return unto me, 
and I will return unto you.' Who and what he is, we are 
too ignorant to tell; but we feel what he is to us ; when he is 
with us, we seem to be in the precincts of heaven." 

Such, doubtless, were the unspoken thoughts of many 
of these poor outcasts, who, that day, "drew near" to Jesus, 
the "friend of sinners ;" and many of wlnm, we may hope 
and believe, have been drawing nearer and nearer to th it 
heart of infinite love, now for more than eighteen hundred 
years. 

This, my brethren, is Luke's wonderful painting of Jesus 
— infinitely grander than Munkacsky's ' ' Christ before Pilate," 
or Ezekiel's ''Jesus bound." It preaches its own sermon, 
infinitely more eloquent than Paul or Apollos. My ambition 
is to hang this picture in the gallery of your heart, where it 
may live in undying love. 

And we shall take time now to point out but two of its 
great beauties. 

i. We learn the true character of Jesus. We can stand 
in this sacred place and see into that "'open secret" of His 
mighty love ; the love that was stronger than death ; that was 
higher than heaven, and deeper than hell ; the love that 
sweat blood in Gethsemane, and shed blood on Calvary ; the 
love that passed all bounds of time and space, and classes 
and conditions ; the love that opened its arms so wide that a 
world of "publicans and sinners" might enter it and be saved. 

And you will observe two prominent features of 
his character brought out here — first, his infinite compassion. 



THE GREAT SOUL WINNER. 15 

"He receiveth sinners," — Yea, the worst of sinners, as Paul 
says, the "chief of sinners." 

And who is he that does this? the God of glory, in 
whose presence the angels cast their crowns, and veil their 
faces; the Holy One of Israel, in whose sight the heavens 
are not clean ! 

He it is who stands by the shore of Galilee in this strange 
audience, graciously receiving sinners, rebels against his gov- 
ernment and transgressors of his law. 

He receives those whom men have cast out; he receives 
those whom the Jews would not speak to; he receives those 
whom the Pharisees looked upon as abandoned by God, and 
beyond the reach of mercy. Received them? Yea — par- 
doned them, blessed them, loved, sanctified them — made 
them worthy of his infinite love, of his glorious home in 
heaven ! 

"I did not speak to him, no, no," recently said an emi- 
nent divine of another man who had offended his brother. 
That was a man* sway! "I can not only speak to them," 
said Jesus, "but I can love them and save them ; men who 
have not only injured my brethren, but spent whole lives in 
injuring and insulting my Father!" That is a God' sway! 
You see the difference? "For my thoughts are not your 
thoughts, neither are my ways your ways," saith the Lord. 

Again you will notice his infinite condescension. He 
not only receives them, but he eats with them, a thing un- 
known among the Jews. 

Yea, he goes to their humble homes, the abodes of pov- 
erty and wretchedness, sits down to their scanty board, and 
eats with them, making himself one of them, becomes a 
companion, a. friend, breaking every barrier down between in- 



16 THE SOUL WINNER. 

finite wealth and abject poverty ; between infinite holiness 
and loathsome sinfulness. 

He eats with them' He shows them that he loves them 

well enough to share their humble board, to stoop to their 
low estate. He shows them that the Son of God is the 
Sj.ziour of sinners, and that the greatest of Kings can be the 
humblest of men ! 

He came to "seek and to save the lost/' and he went 
until he found them in the cellars and garrets, in the high- 
ways and byways, in the slums and purlieus of vice, over 
mountains of sin. and through valleys of sorrow. 

" O, None of the ransomed ever knew 

How deep were the waters crossed, 
How dark was the night the Lord passed through, 

Ere he found his sheep that was lost. 
Out in the desert he heard its cry. 
Sick and helpless and ready to die."' 

That was his heavenlv mission here, among a world of 
publicans and sinners, to bring us back to God, and he 
wrought it through tears, and blood, and death ! 

2 . Now this gives us the true conception of Vic Gospel. It 
is not eloquent discourses; not beautiful essays: not deep 
dissertations; not political harangues; not philosophical 
speculations. Xo, none of these. 

It is glad tidings of great joy; good news of mighty 
love; the love of God manifested by his Son, Jesus Christ. 
Any oiher preaching but this is an idle waste o( time and 
breath. 

The Gospel proceeds on the fact that we are sinners. No 
sinners, no Saviour : "'The whole need not a physician.'' 



THE GREAT SOUL WINNER. 17 

The righteous need no repentance. " The ninety and nine '' 
need no Saviour; it is the lost one. And, verily, that includes 
more tnan the " pnblicans and sinners." It includes you and 
me; includes all men. "For," says Paul, "there is no dif- 
ference, for all have sinned and come short of the glory of 
God." 

We need that compassion and condescension as much as 
the poorest and humblest sinner in Galilee. And He is as 
ready to grant it now as He was then. 

For blessed be His name, He is "the same yesterday and 
to d.iy and forever." 

His great heart beats with the same infinite love now as 
then. His voice has lost none of its pathos, and His arm 
none of its power. 

He is Jesus of Nazareth yet, the Son of God, and the 
Son of Mary forever, and still "Friend of sinners" is His 
name. And though He is sitting on the throne of God, and 
ruling the nations at His will, He is still receiving sinners, and 
eating with them ! Still winning them by His love. 

And through every corner of this sin-cursed earth He 
sends forth this royal invitation : " The Spirit and the Bride 
say come ! and let him that heareth say come ; and let him 
that is athirst come ; and whosoever will, let him take the water 
of life freely.'" 

You hear. You are commissioned. Go and say come. 
Go in the spirit and power of the Great Soul Winner. He 
promises it to all who go. 



18 THE SOUL WINNER. 



WHO IS THE PREACHER? 



" Let him that heareth, say come." — Rcz\ xxii. 17. 



It is a matter of the greatest importance to determine 
who must publish this glad tidings to a dying world. If the 
ordained ministry, alone, are to do it, then it would seem 
almost a hopeless task ; for as yet, their number has always 
been comparatively small and inadequate. It would be like 
reducing an army to its commissioned officers, and sending 
the whole body of soldiers home. I need not say, such an 
army, however brave and patriotic, would win few battles. 

But men are too wise too make war in that way ; so we 
may reasonably suppose that God never expected to seal the 
lips of every soldier of the cross, but commanded even the 
restored Gadarene demoniac to "go home to his friends, and 
tell them how great things the Lord had done for him." And 
we have failed to understand the Gospel, if such a command 
is not yet given to every one upon whom He has had com- 
passion, and delivered from the demons. Not only duty, but 
gratitude should compel such a course. The "servant" was 
commanded to go out into the streets and lanes, into the 
highways and hedges, and compel them to come in. Now, 
who is the servant ? The preacher alone? One would sup- 
pose so from the conduct of many church members, who never 
say come: but your lexicon will tell you a servant ('doulos') 
"is a sincere follower or worshiper of God or Christ." I am 
happy to know this includes many more than the preachers. 
All such are commanded to go out and bring the lost ones in. 



WHO IS THE PKEACHER. 19 

Paul tells us who servants are, Romans vi. 16-22. 
"But now, being made free from sin, and become servants of 
God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlast- 
ing life." Those who are made free from sin, are the serv- 
ants of God. This includes all who believe in Jesus Christ, 
the children of God by faith. All such, be they preachers or 
elders, or private members of the church, are commanded to 
go out and bring the perishing to the Gospel feast. 

The last invitation in the Bible, sent back from Glory, 
by the King, commissions every one who hears, to say come. 
Listen to this wonderful message from heaven to a lost world. 
"The Spirit and the Bride say come. And let him that 
heareth, say Come. And let him that is a thirst, come. And 
whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely." (Rev. 
xxii. 17). You see how all heaven and earth are engaged to 
publish salvation. God, the Spirit, says come. The Church, 
the Bride, says come. Everyone who heareth, is commanded 
to say come. And all who thirst, and all who will, are in 
vited to come and take the water of life freely. There is no 
mistaking the scope of this command. "Let him that heareth 
say come." If you have heard this Gospel message, you are 
commissioned and commanded to repeat it. And this precept 
is reinforced by the example of God's servants in all ages. 
Search and see. 

, Andrew brought Peter. Philip brought Nathanael. The 
leper published it so much Jesus "could no more openly enter 
into the city, but was without in desert places ; and they 
came to Him from every quarter." 

The Gadarene demoniac published the same glad tidings 
in pecapolis, so that "all men did marvel." And men would 
marvel yet, if some of our poor dumb mouths would only 



20 THE SOUL WINNEK. 

tell of these wonderful works of God. And lest sOme timid 
woman should fear she was not allowed a part in this blessed 
work and its reward — the Holy Spirit has left on record the 
history of the nameless, Samaritan woman, who so testified 
for Jesus "that many of the Samaritans of that city believed 
on Him for the saying of the woman." Of course, this 
duty and privilege of all who hear, must not be confounded 
with the spiritual and official duties of those who are called 
to be rulers in God's house. The church is the Kingdom 
of God, and like other kingdoms, has its officers and laws of 
government. The Holy Ghost has given to the church cer- 
tain officers and teachers whose place and functions none 
others can assume. 

The dreadful fate of Korah, Dathan and Abiram, is a 
warning to all ages of the sin and danger of such impious 
presumption. (Numbers xvi.) And Paul reiterates it (in 
Heb. v. 4) where he says "No man taketh this honor unto 
himself, but he that is called of God as was Aaron." 

The duties of the holy ministry in God's house, can 
only be properly discharged by those who have been regu- 
larly called, ordained and installed to this work. All others 
are positively and explicitly forbidden to assume these official 
functions, both men and women. 

"Let your women keep silence in the churches, for it is 
not permitted unto them to speak." "It is a shame for 
women to speak in the church." Three times over God re- 
peats this command. (I. Cor. xiv. 34-35). "Let the women 
learn in silence with all subjection ; but I suffer not a woman 
to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in 
silence." (I. Tim. ii. 11-12). This is God's word, and not 
man's. To those who reverence that word, it is not neces- 



WHO IS THE PREACHER. 21 

sary to add any exhortation. To those who do not, it would 
be useless. 

The Exegesis that would explain away those commands, 
would leave nothing worth preserving in the Bible. But, 
blessed be God. the duty and privilege of saying, "Come," 
is open to everyone who hears, each in his own place. 

No preacher ever preached the Gospel so tenderly and 
eloquently as my mother, and she would have fainted to have 
been called on in public to preach, or even to pray. But in 
her house, and in a woman's place, she told the story more 
sweetly and lovingly than some mighty preachers, I have 
heard. 

And many of the most effective laborers in God's vine- 
yard, are humble members of the church, who, out of love 
to Christ and the souls of men, go forth saying "Come," and 
reach thousands of hearts and homes which are closed to the 
ordained ministry. To them, especially, I think that gracious 
promise in Malachi, which closes the Old Testament, is ap- 
plicable. 

"Then they that feared the Lord spake often one to an- 
other; and the Lord hearkened and heard it, and a book of 
remembrance was written before him for them that feared 
the Lord, and that thought upon his name. And they shall 
be mine, saith the Lord of Hosts, in that day when I make 
up my jewels, and I will spare them, as a man spareth his 
own son that serveth him." 



22 THE SOUL WINNER. 



BAPTISM WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT. 



<< Wait for the Promise ! "—Acts I. 4. 



Young Gentlemen : 

1 hope I need hardly admonish you that all your work 
will be in vain without the presence and power of the Holy 
Spirit. The most powerful engine is helpless and useless 
without a motive power. So is the most eloquent sermon 
and the ablest preacher. The power is without and above any 
man, all men. It is the "power from on high." It is the 
power of God, the baptism of the Holy Spirit. All your 
theological training, all your learning, zeal and earnestness 
will avail nothing without it. Even "Paul may plant and 
A polios water, but God gives the increase." 

The history 7 of the Church furnishes too many sad proofs 
of this fact. There has been preaching enough to have con- 
verted the world, if it had been accompanied with the power 
of the Holy Spirit. On the day of Pentecost, one sermon, 
by an unlearned fisherman was blessed to the conversion of 
three thousand souls. The order is now reversed, and it 
takes hundreds, if not thousands of sermons, by educated 
men, to convert one soul. 

Christ's great commission to His servants was to "go 
into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature ; " 
but they were not to go until they had received the power 
from on high,— the baptism of the Holy Ghost. 

They waited until they received this power, on the day 
of Pentecost, and one sermon by the man who denied hj s 



BAPTISM WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT. 23 

Lord, in that very city, was followed by thousands of con- 
fessions. Wherefore? Because he had the "power from on 
high," the power of God. 

Why do not such results follow now, generally? Be- 
cause we go without the power. .That makes the difference. 
Surely, it is not in the learning, or ability of the preachers, 
nor in the condition or character of the congregations. 

Everything is in our favor in these respects. Our preach- 
ers are not " unlearned and ignorant men;" and our congre- 
gitions are not " Jerusalem sinners," fresh from the cruci- 
fixion of the Saviour. 

The cause must be found elsewhere. I need only refer 
you to the inspired history of that day, in the first and second 
chapters of the Acts of the Apostles. 

Nothing is more plainly taught in God's word, and in the 
experience of the Church than that the power to save men 
is not human, but divine. You have known the ministry of 
some most able and eloquent and godly men prove an almost 
barren failure, so far as the conversion of sinners. And you 
have known the labors of other most humble and unlearned 
men followed by the conversion of scores of souls. How 
true it is "not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit," 
men are saved. Even Paul, the prince of preachers, said 
the Gospel is " the p07ver of God unto salvation." 

Until men learn that, their preaching will be in vain ; 
only prophecying to dry bones, which can neither hear, nor 
see, nor move. Not until the Spirit comes and breathes upon 
them will they ever live and stand up. That such is the teach* 
ing of Scripture is too evident to need argument. 

Then you must wait until you receive this promise and 
this power. Christ forbid the Apostles to preach without it. 



24 THE SOUL WINNER. 

There is no use of a man undertaking a work that he can not 
do. It is a waste of time and labor, and thousands are en- 
gaged in such fruitless efforts today, trying to do God's work. 
without God's presence and power. 

It is worse than useless. It is sinful. 

I hope I need not say that this baptism of the Holy 
Ghost, for service, is subsequent to and independent of His 
work in regeneration. The Apostles were regenerate long 
before Pentecost, but they were not baptized with the Holy 
Ghost until that day. Search the Scriptures and you will 
rind many proofs of this fact. , See Acts i. n., viii. and xix. 
chapters, in which is given an account of the Holy Spirit's 
descent upon the Apostles, the Samaritans, the Ephesians, 
and in Matt. in. and Acts x. upon Christ himself. Even- 
Christian is a regenerate man, by the power of the Spirit ; 
but every Christian. I am sorry to say. is not baptized with 
the Holy Spirit to render effective service as a Christian. 

Compare the lives of the Apostles themselves, before and 
after Pentecost. That morning "the number of names to- 
gether were about one hundred and twenty." And the same 
day, [after the baptism with the Spirit,) "there were added 
unto them about three thousand souls ! " One hundred and 
twenty against three thousand ! And these one hundred and 
twenty, the fruit of some three years preaching ; and these 
three thousand the result of one sermon ! 

The Holy Spirit gives life in regeneration. The sinner 
is saved, and becomes a " Son of God." The baptism of the 
Holy Ghost gives power to the saved, the power to teach, 
preach and serve God effectively. The Apostles (except 
Judas) were saved men before Pentecost, but they were not 
successful preachers until they received " the power from on 



BAPTISM WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT. 25 

high," on that memorable day. So will we be. Our ministry 
will be fruitless and unhappy, compared with what it might 
be, and ought to be. 

For I want to say, that this great blessing was not an 
especial and exclusive gift to the Apostles, or confined to 
them and their age. Jesus had told them to "wait for the 
promise of the Father/' the " baptism with the Holy Ghost." 
Peter, in his sermon on the day of Pentecost, said to the peo- 
ple, " Repent and be baptized every one of you, in the name 
of Jesus Christ, for the remission of sins, and you shall re- 
ceive the gift of the Holy Ghost, for the promise is unto you 
and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as 
many as the Lord our God shall call." 

If God has " called you," then "the promise is unto 
you" and that promise is the gift of the Holy Spirit. And 
blessed be His Name, the history of the Church since the day 
of Pentecost, abounds in many proofs that this precious gift 
has been bestowed on many "afar off," who have preached 
" not with enticing words of man's wisdom," but in " demon- 
stration of the Spirit and of power." Search the Scriptures 
and the annals of the Church and you will need no other 
proof. 

Now if God has made us such a gift, it is clearly our 
duty to receive it; as much our duty to receive the gift of the 
II i\y Ghost for service, as the gift of Jesus Christ for Sal- 
vation. We can not be saved, ourselves, without receiving 
the gift of God in Jesus Christ. We can not lead others to 
Christ without receiving the gift of God in the baptism of the 
Holy Spirit. Our salvation depends on receiving Christ. The 
salvation of others depends on our receiving the Holy Spirit. 
Who can say which is the most necessary? Even Paul 



26 THE SOUL WINNER. 

said "I could wish that myself were accursed from Christ, 
for my brethren, my kinsmen, according to the flesh." Will 
not every truly devoted Christian feel the same concern. for 
the salvation of others, and seek the power that can save 
them ? 

How eminently true ought this to- be of those who are 
called and sent upon this heavenly mission ; and how sadly 
and sinfully will they fail, without the only power which can 
qualify them for successful work, the power from on high, 
the power of the Holy Spirit. 

If you ask me how to obtain this power, I need only re- 
ply, it is a gift; and the way to get a gift is to receive it ; and 
it is not an accident that this is the very word used by Peter 
on the day of Pentecost. "Ye shall receive the gift of the 
Holy Ghost." It is the same word used by Paul to the 
Ephesians, " Did ye receive the Holy Ghost when ye be- 
lieved?" And it is the same word used by Christ himself 
when He breathed on His disciples and said c< Receive ye 
the Holy Ghost." 

And Jesus never uttered a more precious promise than 
•when He said " Ask and it shall be given unto you, seek and 
ye shall find, knock and it shall be opened unto you." * * 
" If ye, then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto 
your children, how much more shall your Heavenly Father 
give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him ? " 

Did you ever try to solve that problem ? Then you 
know something of God's infinite willingness to give you this 
last and best gift to His Church. A gift so great and im- 
portant and indispensable that the Saviour said it was ex- 
pedient for Him to leave the Church and the world that the 
Holy Spirit might come. 



BAPTISM WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT. 27 

I may be permitted to add the testimony of Mr. Moody 
on this subject. "If these young disciples would learn, in 
the morning of their experience, one secret of success in 
Christian life and usefulness, it would save them from a great 
many dark hours. Conversion is one thing ; the power of 
the Holy Ghost resting on us for Christian life and service is 
another thing. 

' 'At the close of Christ's life, the one thing He taught His 
desciples to look for was power, and they were to look for 
that because the Holy Ghost was to come. They were ' sons 
of God,' but without this special power, this ' Enduement of 
the Spirit." 

Even more emphatic is Mr. Spurgeon's testimony. He 
said : "If we do not have the Spirit of God it were better 
to shut the churches, to nail up the doors, to put a black cross 
on them and say, " God, have mercy on us." 

If you ministers have not the Spirit of God you had 
better not preach; and you people had better stay at home. 

"I think I speak not too strongly when I say that a 
church in the land without the Spirit of God is rather a curse 
than a blessing. If you have not the Spirit of God, Chris- 
tian worker, remember that you stand in somebody else's 
way ; you are a tree bearing no fruit, standing where another 
fruitful tree might grow. This is solemn work. The Holy 
Spirit or nothing, and worse than nothing." 

Such words from the great preacher whom God so long 
and so signally honored and blessed should be seriously and 
prayerfully considered. Let us see to it that they are not 
applicable to us. 



28 THE SOUL WINNER. 



HOW TO PREACH. 



••And it came to pass in Iconium, that they went both together into 

the synagogue of the Jews, and so spake, that a great 

multitude both of the Jews and also of the 

Greeks believed.'* — Ads xiv. i. 



We come now. young gentlemen, to one of the most im- 
portant matters that will engage your attention. I need not 
say to you that there are many ways to preach. Doubtless you 
have seen this illustrated many times. But I would have you 
to learn to preach like Paul and Barabas at Iconium, who 
••so spake that a great multitude, both of Jews and also of 
the Greeks, believed." I have known men to " so preach " 
that nobody believed. I need not say that such preaching is 
not apostolic, nor profitable, nor successful. Study that word 
:D. ! ' They " so preached " a great multitude believed. If 
you will preach that way now multitudes will believe yet. 
The Gospel has lost none of its power, nor has God lost any 
of His love. 

The Gospel is preached to be believed. If men do not be- 
lieve, your preaching is vain, so far as their salvation is con- 
cerned. It becomes a savor of death instead of life to them. 
I see no reason why men should not "so preach" now. 
Certainly there is no reason on God's side. We have still the 
promise of His presence and His power. The Holy Spirit is 
given to all who ask. Surely we can not lay the blame on 
God. if men do not believe our preaching. 

I do not propose to write a book on homiletics or oratory. 
But I want to offer a few plain suggestions, the result largely 



HOW TO PREACH. 29 

of my own observation and experience. To so preach that 
men believe, you must preach like you believe it yourself . I 
have often heard the Gospel from men who preached it like 
it was a fable, or a speculation, or a dream. They convinced 
nobody. Such had better been left undone or better done. 
Paul and Barnabas did not preach that way. They weie 
dead in earnest, and they preached in earnest. They moved 
multitudes, because they were moved themselves. 

Read Paul's sermons and epistles, which are moving the 
world yet, and you will learn the secret of his power. Do 
you hear him cry "Woe is unto me if I preach not the Gospel." 
Do you hear him say, " Neither count I my life dear unto 
myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the 
ministry which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify 
the Gospel of the grace of God." Do you hear him pleading 
with his countrymen saying " I could wish that myself were 
accursed from Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen according 
to the flesh." 

No wonder such a man " turned the world upside 
down." No wonder a great multitude of Jews and Greeks 
believed when he preached. The reason men do not believe 
now is because we do not " So preach." The Gospel has to 
do with the most tremendous facts in the universe. God 
alone can comprehend them. All eternity is at stake on the 
result of this preaching. Heaven and Hell are the dread 
alternatives of believing or disbelieving. Two worlds are 
moving, to save or destroy the soul. How can a man deal 
with these great facts in a lifeless way? He has never felt 
powers of the world to come, who fails to mike others fee 1 
them. 



30 THE SOUL WINNER. 

Pray God to baptise you with the spirit of earnestness, 
of zeal, of love ; the spirit of John the Baptist, and Peter and 
Paul, and above all, the spirit of Jesus. 

Then you must not only preach earnestly but plainly. 
Paul said " I nad rather speak five words with my under 
standing that by my voice I might teach others also, than ten 
thousand words in an unknown tongue." Young gentlemen, 
a good deal of preaching is in an unknown tongue to a large 
part of the congregation. All preaching not understood by 
the people had as well be in Latin or Greek. You observe 
Paul puts a very low estimate on such performances. Five 
words with the understanding are worth more than a whole 
series of sermons, in language unknown to the congregation. 

He calls that kind of a preacher a Barbarian, because he 
does not know the meaning of his voice, (i Cor. xiv, it). 
Do not be Barbarians, by speaking in an unknown tongue 
the great truths of the Gospel. " Except ye utter by the 
tongue words easy to be understood, how shall it be known 
what is spoken, for you shall speak into the air." And 
such preachers generally speak to the air; for people desert 
the pews where they hear only a dead language from the 
unknown tongue of a Barbarian. Remember Paul's ad- 
monition to such, "If there be no interpreter, let him keep 
silence in the church, and let him speak to himself and to 
God." I have heard many sermons that needed an interpreter 
to translate them into the language of the people, if indeed 
they were worth it. 

In what marked and sublime contrast is the sermon on 
the mount by the Divine Preacher? How simple, how plain, 
how pointed, how practical ! Let that be your model. , 



HOW TO PKEACH. 31 

I beg the pardon of the intelligent children of my church 
if I ever preach so unlearnedly and barbarously that they 
can not understand it. And remember that the great mass of 
people are children in understanding, when it comes to re 
ligion. They may be wise in everything else, but are blind 
and deaf to spiritual things. Therefore it is the more nec- 
essary to use " words easy to be understood." 

It was the Divine Teacher who spake so the "common 
people heard Him gladly." In our ignorance and conceit we 
often speak so they can not understand us at all, and leave us 
gladly. Let us learn of Him who " spake as never man 
spake." 

To this end it will be well to study the plainest language 
and the purest style. And, young gentlemen, your mother's 
Bible will furnish you the best model of that style. "Search 
the Scriptures" for that, as well as every other good thing. 
Learn to speak the English language, not a mongrel of Greek 
and Latin and English. I would leave out long words gen 
erally, and every word which people do not easily understand. 
Do not preach in theological or ecclesiastical phraseology. 
It is not the language of the people whom you wish to in- 
struct. Nor is it the language of the Master who sent you 
to preach His Gospel. 

I believe very much of Mr. Spurgeon's great power lay 
in the strong and simple Anglo Saxon in which he preached. 
Read his sermons and compare them with some others you 
have heard from learned men, who " speak into the air." 
And then compare the results of such learned preaching with 
the results of the blessed preaching of the great London 
preacher. 



32 THE SOUL WINNER. 

Then, I would recommend the judicious use of illustra- 
tions. The Gospel deals with great truths, but they are spir- 
itual and invisible. We can not see God, or the soul, or 
angels, or eternity, or heaven, or hell, or faith, or hope or 
redemption. And these themes constitute the great burden 
of our preaching. But Jesus taught us how to bring them to 
the apprehension of men by His wonderful parables and' 
miracles. So frequently did he use them, that it is said 
"without a parable spake He not unto them" Now, these 
parables were illustrations of spiritual truths ; "heavenly dia- 
grams," as dear Dr. Robinson used to call them. 

While we may not know how to make parables, He has 
placed in our reach many illustrations of these great truths of 
religion. Your own reading, observation and experience 
should furnish you with many ; and obliging authors have 
compiled many more of easy access. Do not be betrayed 
into excess of use, and smother your meaning beneath flowers 
and figures, or divert your audience with stories and similes. 
Use them only to throw a side-light on the great truths you 
wish to impress. For you must remember that the great ob- 
ject of all your preaching is the glory of God, and the good 
of men. The sermon which does not accomplish this, is 
worthless, though it be eloquent, and logical, and learned. 
For this reason, do not let your sermon engross your atten- 
tion either in its style or delivery, but seek first and last the 
great end of the sermon — the glory of God, and the salva- 
tion of men. 

Maybe I had better caution you against the length of 
your sermon. A good sermon is never too long. If it is, it 
ceases to be good. Therefore, stop while it is good. I have 
no sympathy with the popular cry for short sermons from 



HOW TO PREACH. 33 

those who enjoy long speeches and operas. But I have 
known the effect of a good sermon destroyed by unnecessary 
length. 

Preach for effect, and not against time. Some sermons 
of twenty minutes are long, and others of an hour are short. 
But men are human, and it is best not to weary a congre- 
gation by a long discourse. And do not think that a sermon 
is to' be measured by the yard. It is better to weigh it. I 
have heard a twenty minutes sermon which out-weighed hours 
of empty exhortation. Let yours be weighty with great 
truths and earnest words. Such sermons need not be long, 
and ought not to be. Never weary your congregation, 
whether your discourse be long or short. It should have the 
earnest attention of the people. When you lose that, it is 
time to stop, or do something else. 

Probably you would like to ask if you should use a 
manuscript. That depends on several things. Some "pecu- 
liar people" prefer it. As we must be "all things to all men,' 
I suppose it is best to read to such men, unless you can teach 
them a better way. Then some preachers are peculiar. They 
can read better than they can speak. Well, such should read 
their sermons, if they can not learn a better way. Jonathan 
Edwards and Dr. Chalmers read their sermons, I believe, but 
that was a good while ago, and they were great enough to 
read. If you are that kind of men, you can use your manu- 
script. Not being of that kind myself, I had to learn an- 
other way, and an easier way for most of us to preach with 
effect. I never liked to see a man read a composition, and 
most people, I find, are very much like me. I never heard a 
lawyer read his argument before a judge, though he spoke all 
day. He would probably lose his case if he did. I think 



34 THE SOUL WINNER. 

we all can agree that reading io an audience is not so effective 
as speaking, and all preach for effect, and ought to do it in 
the most effective way. 

Do not understand me to say, your sermon should 
be extemporaneous. Very far from it. Generally, I would 
recommend that every word be carefully written, and if 
necessary, memorized. But you will find that it is not nec- 
essary, nor best to confine yourself to the words of your 
Avritten sermon. Master your subject, and let it master you, 
and you will not need a manuscript, and could not use it if 
you had it. I had the misfortune to lose my valise containing 
the manuscripts of my sermons, at Eufaula, Ala. Some of my 
people were glad of my misfortune, for they thought I got 
along better without them, though I never used them in 
preaching. Better depend on God and your subject, and the 
occasion, than on the lifeless epistle of a written sermon. I 
have heard some very fine sermons read from manuscripts; 
but I have been moved and melted by others not half so 
fine which were spoken from the heart. Let me recommend 
you to try it. 

It may prove helpful in the beginning of your ministry 
to make a brief sketch or skeleton of your discourse, with the 
principal divisions and illustrations, and keep it near to re- 
fresh your memory. But you will soon learn to dispense 
with even this help. I need not stop to point out the many 
and great advantages of preaching without manuscript. You 
will find them set down in any good treatise on public speak- 
ing, and you will discover them in your own efforts. Believe 
me, young, gentlemen, you will not find it so difficult to tell 
what you know, as to know what to tell. There is no trouble 
in getting water out of a full barrel. 



HOW TO PREACH. 35 

And this suggests the importance of being able to teach 
the people. That is your commission, 'Go teach all nations." 
From the exercises of some preachers, you would suppose 
their commission read, "Go exhort all nations." Teaching is 
the communication of knowledge. People soon get tired of 
platitudes, and barren exhortation. Truth is the food of the 
soul. It can not live on husks of sentiment or excitement. 
Your duty is to feed the sheep ; they will soon quit coming if 
you quit feeding them, no matter how loudly you may call. 
The veriest sheep knows corn from cobs, and deserts the fold 
where it is not fed. So, if you would fill your pews, and 
fulfill your mission, feed the sheep on the rich spiritual food 
God has so abundantly provided in his word. Then you 
will see your people growing in grace, because they are grow- 
ing in knowledge, under your ministry. 



WHAT TO PREACH. 



"Preach the Gospel." — Mark xvi : 15. 



You may think it quite unnecessary, to even suggest 
what a preacher of the Gospel ought to preach. But after 
you have had more experience you will decide that some 
preachers of the Gospel preach anything but the Gospel. 
I just read of a cultured young preacher who had re- 
cently returned from Germany, and preached before a con- 
gregation, mostly of farmers, upon "The subjective influ- 
ence of Christian consciousness." An honest deacon said 
the more he 'unfolded it, the more he covered it up.' Prob- 
ably that preacher would have been better employed sawing 
wood. 



36 THE SOUL WINNER. 

I hope I need hardly say to you, young gentlemen, 
that you are sent to preach the Gospel; not philosophy, or 
politics, or poetry, or history, or metaphysics, or your 
opinion, your theory, or yourself, but the Gospel ! That is 
to be the substance, and scope, and extent of your preach- 
ing. Even Paul, great and learned as he e was, said, "I 
determined not to know anything among you save Jesus 
Christ and Him crucified." Philip, under the guidance of 
the Holy Spirit " preached Jesus" to the Ethiopian eunuch. 
Your commission reads: "Go ye into all the world and 
preach the Gospel to every creature." 

Do not be afraid that you will soon exhaust this theme. 
You will find that it grows upon you. The landscape widens 
as you ascend the mountain of God. The Gospel deals with 
the greatest facts in the Universe. It is infinite love, and 
infinite wisdom, and infinite power. These are mighty 
themes. You can not exhaust them. It is everlasting life 
from an Eternal Spirit to an immortal soul. You can not 
measure these. It invites to a heaven of unutterable glory? 
and warns from a hell of bottomless despair. It lays three 
worlds under tribute for arguments to save souls to God and 
life. Heaven and earth and hell are moving to save or de- 
stroy the souls of men. God and angels and men are active 
agents in this mighty conflict. What theme ever engaged 
human or angelic energies, comparable to this Gospel ? 

Like its Divine Author it has many phases — many points 
of contact with men. It reveals to him his lost condition ; 
points out to him his utter helplessness; shows him how it is 
self-procured and sinful; how God devised, and his Son ex- 
ecuted this wonderful plan of Redemption, revealed in the 
Scriptures; how that Son, at an infinite cost, purchased sal- 



WHAT TO PREACH. 37 

vation ; and how God, the Holy Spirit, applies that redemp- 
tion to the soul in conversation ; how this salvation is freely 
offered to every creature; and how by faith and repentance 
it is received as the gift of God. 

But, young gentlemen, it would require a volume to set 
forth even the chief features of this Gospel of the Lord Jesus 
Christ. John tells us that he " supposed that even the world 
itself could not contain the books that should be written" to 
tell the things which Jesus did. And this is the Gospel ! I 
remember that when I first began to preach, I was apprehen- 
sive that I should soon exhaust the subject. And after finish- 
ing my first sermon, I had about finished my material, poetry 
and all. I have learned a good many things since, and 
nothing more strange and wonderful than the infinite fullness 
and freshness of the "Glorious Gospel of the Blessed God'' 
as Paul calls it. As I read my Bible, I select themes for 
discourses on this Gospel, and I reckon have enough laid up 
for a hundred years already. 

No man or angel has ever yet heard or seen or felt all 
the love and grace and power and glory that is hidden in that 
"old, old story of Jesus and His love." Not only will we 
never exhaust it on earth, gentlemen, but Eternity itself will 
be none too long to "comprehend, with all saints, what is 
the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; and to 
know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge." 

As everything must be done decently and in order, in 
God's house, I may suggest to you something of the order in 
which I generally present these gospel truths, when preach- 
ing as an evangelist. You will soon discover that the saints 
generally need as much preaching as the sinners; not for 
their conversion, but for their revival. In God's Economy 



38 THE SOUL WINNER. 

of Redemption, he makes the church his agent in reaching 
the unconverted. It is as true to-day as in ancient days of 
Israel, that Salvation cometh out of Zion. The prayer 
meeting preceded Pentecost. The asking must precede the 
giving. Zion must travail before her children are brought 
forth. 

Therefore I seek first the revival of the church, and direct 
my first efforts to secure the earnest and active co-operation 
of all the members in prayer, and praise, and work. Until 
the church is revived, there is little use in preaching to sin- 
ners. For this purpose I preach upon the duty and necessity 
of such revivals on the part of the church. The power of 
prayer is illustrated by many examples recorded in the Scrip- 
tures, as Hannah, and Elijah, and Moses, the Syrophenecian 
woman, and the importunate friend, the widow and the un- 
just judge. 

The Scriptures abound in many examples of prevailing 
prayer. And God has not left Himself without many 
witnesses in these last times, that He is still the Hearer and 
Answerer of prayer; but in times and ways without number 
has shown that His hand is not shortened that it cannot 
save, neither His ear heavy that it cannot hear. I hope your 
own experience will furnish you many precious illustrations 
of this truth. 

The duty of repentance for their sins, and confession of 
them, including their lukewarmness. which is most offensive 
in God's sight, should be urged upon the church kindly and 
plainly. Earnest and believing prayer for revival should 
engage every heart until God answers, as He surely will. 
But you should not forget that one of the most important 
means of revival of the church is working in God's vineyard. 



WHAT TO^PREACH. 39 

The prayer that does not move us will not move God. We 
show our prayer by our works, as well as our faith. Fred 
Douglass said he prayed long for freedom, put never got it 
until he " put feet on his prayers." 

Sa we must put feet on our prayers if we expect them to 
reach the unconverted. God works through means, and we 
are His means for the salvation of men. Let the Church 
understand then, that prayer alone will not raise the dead 
sinner, any more than prayer alone will raise a crop of corn. 
The stone had to be rolled away before Jesus commanded 
Lazarus to come forth. Our duty is to roll away the stone. 
God could save men without the preaching of the Gospel, 
but God does not do it. It has " pleased God, by the fool- 
ishness of preaching, to save them that believe." We are to 
do the preaching, God does the saving. Paul must plant and 
Apollos water, before God will give the increase. 

So we are co-workers with God. We can not do God's 
part, and He will not do ours. We can not make the seed 
grow, but we can plant it. We can not raise the dead, but 
we can roll away the stone. We can not save a soul, but 
we can bring it to Jesus, as Philip did. We can not heal 
lepers, but we can publish the fame of One who can. We 
can not cast out devils, but we can " tell how great things 
the Lord hath done for us." These truths should be im- 
pressed upon God's people in order to secure their active co- 
operation in this great work. They should pray earnestly, 
and labor faithfully in bringing people to church, and bringing 
them to Christ. 

God has given to " every man his work," and no one 
man can do two men's work. How much less could one 
preacher do the work of a whole church. Get every one to 



40 THE SOUL WINNER. 

do his work, and in that way only will the world be saved and 
God satisfied. The slow progress the Church has made in 
the conversion of the world, is due largely, I believe, to the 
fact that most of its members do little or nothing for its ad- 
vancement. Most of the work is done by "a remnant." 
The Master is still asking, " were there not ten cleansed; but 
where are the nine? " You will find the churches filled with 
these nines. What changes would come over the church and 
the world, if we could get all these to work as well as the one 
Samaritan ! 

WHAT TO PREACH TO THE UNCONVERTED. 

Of course a differeut order of truths must be presented 
to the unconverted. They are not servants and have no 
place or work in God's vineyard. They are not saved, and 
can not be expected to help save others. Their first duty is 
to be saved themselves, and then try to save others. Bat 
you are met at the outset by the sad fact that the sinner is 
ignorant of his lost estate. Until he is awakened to a sense 
of this fact, and convicted of sin he will not want or accept 
salvation. If a man does not believe he is diseased, he will 
not want a physician or take a remedy. So your first duty 
towards the sinner is to show him his lost estate. 

This great fact is asserted in God's word in the most em- 
phatic terms, and illustrated in the most graphic imagery. In 
Genesis, chapter vi. verse 5, we read, "And God saw that 
the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every 
imagination of the thoughts of his heart w r as only evil con- 
tinually." What rhetorician could state the utter ruin of sin 
and total depravity of mankind in stronger or more unequivo- 
cal language? So incorrigible and desperate was the race of 



WHAT TCTPREACH. 41 

men that God determined to wipe them off the face of the 
earth, and drowned them all with a flood except Noah and 
his family. 

In the first chapter of Paul's letter to the Romans is a 
picture of mankind as appalling as it is true. David asserts 
that there is "none that doeth good; no, not one." John, 
the beloved disciple, declares "if we say we have no sin, 
we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us." So you 
will find no want of themes under which to set forth this sad 
condition of the sinner, the inevitable end of which is death. 

When you have done this, then, of course, the next and 
only proper theme is the remedy for sin, the blood of Jesus 
Christ which cleanseth from all sin, the Gospel of God's free 
grace to all men. Paul's answer to the Philippian jailor is 
your answer and theme to every inquiring sinner, " Believe " 
Everything else is " another Gospel " and not only deceptive, 
but sinful. 



42 THE SOUL WINNER. 



THE PREACHER. 



" We are Ambassadors for Christ.'' — 2 Cor. v. 20. 



Probably I ought to say a word here about the character 
you bear, and the conduct which becomes it. I am sorry to 
say some of us sometimes forget who we are. and wherefore 
we are sent. One word in the Bible should give you such a 
conception of the dignity and honor of your office, that 
would forever prevent you from any conduct unbecoming 
your station ; that word is " Ambassador." " Now. then, we 
are ambassadors for Christ," etc. (2 Cor. v, 20.) An am- 
bassador is a representative of a court or a government, and 
has the interests and honor of that court to sustain. The 
preacher is an Ambassador from the Court of Heaven — from 
the King of Kings — bearing the most important and solemn 
messages to His subjects. 

Now I leave you to determine what character becomes 
such an office, — what wisdom, what prudence, what dignity, 
what decorum should distinguish so high and noble a calling. 
How sadly it is degraded sometimes by the levity, the flip- 
pancy, and the worldly conformity of one who wears the in- 
signia of the King. A good woman once said of a minister, 
that she was sorry she ever knew him out of the pulpit. Let 
no one ever have occasion to criticize your ministerial con- 
duct in such language as that. Such a minister greatly im- 
pairs his influence in the pulpit, as well as out of it. 

Do not understand me to say that a preacher should be 
a recluse, or a martinet, or a cynic. Very far from it. He 



THE PREACHER. 43 

should be most agreeable and approachable, most kind and 
companionable, but never to forget what he is, and whom he 
represents. Let him always commend his Master and his 
message by his walk and conversation. The silent example 
of such a minister, who maintains the dignity of his Divine 
Court, and commssion, will have a greater influence among 
men than eloquent discourses from the lips of a man who 
lowers his vocation by unseemly conduct. 

Men have an instinctive sense of 'what becomes a man 
who claims such a high and honorable office as God's minis- 
ter. And they soon lose respect for, if not confidence in one 
who fails to maintain the dignity and honor of his station. 
When Paul said he was "made all things to all men," he 
did not mean that he became worldly to catch worldly people, 
or simple to catch simple people, or fashionable to catch 
fashionable people. He never condescended to such tricks. 
No man ever maintained the high character of an Am- 
bassador of Heaven with more dignity and honor than Paul. 
In a far different sense he became all things to all men, 
as he tells us : ''Unto the Jews I became as a Jew, that 1 
might gain the Jews; to them that are under the law, as un- 
der the law, that I might gain them that are under the law; 
to them that are without law, as without law (being not with- 
out law to God, but under the. law to Christ), that I might 
gain them that are without law." 

You will find it a most profitable exercise, frequently 
and prayerfully to study the Epistles of this prince of 
preachers to Timothy and Titus. They contain the inspired 
wisdom of an ambassador whom God honored above all men 
of his time, and whose mighty influence has moved the world 
for nearly two thousand years. 



44 THE SOUL WINNER. 

I can not dismiss this subject without a word as to your 
conduct as disputants. You will often, in your work, be 
thrown with those who "oppose themselves." You will re- 
quire more grace than is ordinarily given us, if you do not 
dispute instead of "instruct them," as Paul commands. Re- 
member always that you will never persuade everybody to 
see as you see, or believe as you believe. Neither Jesus or 
Paul did that. The constitutions of men's minds differ as 
much as the color of their hair, or the size of their bodies. 
If any oppose themselves, Paul says "instruct them in meek- 
ness ;" do not scold them, nor abuse their errors, but "instruct 
them in meekness," and not in anger. "The servant of the 
Lord must not strive, but be gentle unto all men, apt to 
teach, patient." 

If you will mind that, young gentlemen, it will save you 
a world of trouble, and maybe of mortification. I never had 
a dispute in my life, that I was not ashamed of myself after- 
wards, even though I came off victor. That is not the way 
to win souls, cr to defend the faith. Doubtless some doughty 
champion of an opposing doctrine will challenge you to a 
dispute, as they have done me. I merely invite him to occupy 
my pulpit, and preach the truth as he understands it to my 
people, and let me do the same for him and his people. But 
I have never had such a privilege yet. And do not forget 
that good and true men may Hold doctrines which you con- 
sider unsound and unsafe. Treat them with consideration, 
even while you try to teach a better way. There is some- 
thing better than orthodoxy; it is charity. "Now abideth 
faith, hope and charity; these three; but the greatest of 
these is charity." Be sound in faith, be strong in hope, but 
above all, be full of charity. 



CLOSET PRAYER. 45 



CLOSET PRAYER. 



Enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, 
pray to thy Father, which is in secret." — Matt. vi. 6. 



If I were to say, young gentlemen, that of all things, 
prayer was the most important part of your ministry, I would 
not exaggerate it. It is at once the means of your success, 
and the measure of it. Mr. Goulburn has well said,- 'who- 
ever has learned how to pray, has mastered the great secret 
of spiritual life.' And I would add, ol pulpit power, too. The 
man who does not pray, can not preach, and better not. It 
is a mockery. 

If " prayer is the Christian's vital breath," how much 
more is it the preacher's? And how dead is the man with- 
out breath, and the preacher without prayer? God made 
it the condition of His bestowment of the only Agent that 
can make our ministry successful, — the Holy Spirit. The in- 
vincible logic of Paul, and the mighty eloquence of Apollos, 
were nothing without the power of the Spirit, which is given 
only to earnest and believing prayer. As well try to raise 
crops without rain or sun, as to save men without prayer. 
God only can give the increase, and He gives it only in 
answer to prayer. If I were called upon, my young friends, 
to point out the principal cause of so much preaching, and 
so little fruit, I would say, the want of prayer . 

I have had some considerable experience in preaching this 
Gospel, up and down in this country, and I do not remem- 
ber one single instance in seventeen years where God ever failed 



46 THE SOUL WDTNTR. 

to visit and bless the people who sincerely and earnestly 
sought this blessing and the conversion of souls. I have 
known of big meetings and big preachings that ended in a 
signal failure, for the simple reason that God was m - 
— that His power was not invoked, which alone saves men. 

Neglect anything else, but do not neglect the secret of 
your power : for your power with men will answer to your 
power with God. This is the plain teaching of God's word 
everywhere. We are commanded to " pray without ceasir. 
We are promised every gift in God's hand in answer to 
prayer. We are cited to the example of Christ himself, who 
prayed ail night. We are encouraged by the success of 
numberless saints whose names and history are left on holy 
record for our instruction and encouragement. 

The testimony of all ages confirms these sacred teachings. 

What made Alleine the power he was in the world ? 
His wife writes that when in health " he did rise constantly at 
or before 4 o'clock and would be much troubled if he heard 
smiths or other craftsmen at their trades before he was at 
communion with God."' Sometimes he would devote whole 
to these secret exercises, (of prayer and communion 
with God and singing Psalms.) 

We do no: wonder at the work of Henry Martyn when 
we read this extract from his journal: " Sept. 24. The de- 
termination with which I went to bed last night of devoting 
this day to prayer and fasting, I was enabled to put into exe- 
cution ' After the first year of his ministry he ••judged 
that he had dedicated too much time to public ministrations 
and too little to private communion with God ' How more 
truly may we all take that language as our own ? 



CLOSET PRAYER. 47 

David Brainerd's diary has this note in it: " Lord's day, 
April 25. This morning spent about two hours in sacred 
duties, and was enabled more than ordinarily to agonize for 
immortal souls ; though it was early in the morning and the 
sun scarcely shone at all, yet my body was quite wet with 
sweat." 

These are among the Mighiies of God' 's Army, and their 
might was of God and not of men, and they received it be- 
cause they sought it " with all their heart." Young gentle- 
men, here is the secret of your power and success. Seek it 
and receive it from God in your closets. The baptism of fire 
is only received in the upper room of communion with God. 
So the glory of the transfiguration of our souls comes upon 
us only when we pray. 

I believe Spurgeon did not state it too strongly when he 
said : " All our libraries and studios are mere emptiness 
compared with our closets." " There is no rhetoric like that 
of the heart, and no school for learning it but the foot of the 
cross. It were better that you never learned a rule of human 
oratory, but were full of the power of heaven born love, 
than that you should master Quintillian and Cicero and 
Aristotle, and remain without the Apostolic anointing." 
And this anointing is only promised to those who pray, 
Hannah set the rule and gave the secret of prayer when she 
told the prophet she had " poured out her soul before the 
Lord." Here is where our ministry fails and is barren. It 
lacks the outpouring of the soul before the Lord. 

That prayer set aside the laws of nature, and procured a 
temporal blessing, not only upon her heart and home, but 
upon the world. You do not wonder when I tell you that 
the Judge of Israel for forty years, the Anointer of Kings, 



48 THE SOUL WINNER. 

and the Author of four Books of the Bible, was the answer 
to that prayer. How much more warrant have we to pray for 
the bestowment of greater spiritual blessings, for which we 
have the repeated and express promises of God. The apostles 
understood this when they left serving tables to others, that 
they might "give themselves to prayer and the ministry of 
the Word." You observe they put prayer first, the place of 
honor and importance. So put it in your ministry. 



PUBLIC PRAYER. 



"I exort therefore, that first of all supplications, prayers, interces- 
sions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men — I. Tim. ii. I. 



Of course you will be expected to lead the whole congre- 
gation in their approach to the Throne of Grace. Our Form 
of Government gives you an admirable outline of the appro- 
priate heads of public prayer. But I beg you not to suppose 
that you are bound to go through it all every time you pray. 

Remember we are "not heard for our much speaking," 
or loud speaking either. One might suppose from some 
men's prayers that God was very ignorant or very deaf. God 
knows what we all have need of, before we ask ; and He 
hears not only our words but our thoughts. Above all things 
let your prayers be appropriate. Do not pray for rain when 
it is pouring down, nor for contentment when the church is 
asleep and sinners dead. Words in season are like " apples 
of gold in pictures of silver." Let your prayers abound in 
such. There are some petitions that are always appropriate. 



PUBLIC PRAYER. 49 

But our circumstances are so various, and our wants so diver- 
sified that [set forms of prayer are often ridiculous, if not 
absurd. 

First know definitely what you want, and then ask for it 
definitely. Do not pray to the audience, but to God. As he 
is in Heaven, and you on Earth, let your words be few and 
plain, and your manner be humble and reverent. True 
prayer is a gift. Ask God for it, and use it, and cultivate it. 
To be mighty in prayer, is greater than to be mighty in the 
pulpit, though they generally go together. I have heard 
prayers from the pew, which were better than the sermon 
from the pulpit. 

Do not call on a brother to pray, simply because he is a 
preacher. I am sorry to say, some have not this gift. If 
one cannot learn to pray to edification, better let him pray in 
secret. I am not one of those who believe that every man is 
called upon to lead the public services of the sanctuary. 
Some of the best men I know have no gifts for public speak- 
ing or prayer. They lose their voice or their mind when 
called on in public. My rule is to ask those to pray who can 
do so to edification. Those who do not, I let alone, whether 
they be preachers or not. A lifeless, aimless, heartless prayer 
reaches neither God's ear nor man's heart. 

Be sure your prayers do not weary your congregation. 
The most earnest prayers are not long. Presbyterians and 
some others are somewhat given to long prayers. Men are 
human, very human, and must be dealt with according to 
the laws of human nature. It does not do to say they ought 
not to get weary in speaking to God; they do. " Let your 
moderation be known to all men," in prayer as well as in 
preaching. Prayer is more of a spirit than a form or an ex- 



50 THE SOUL WINNER. 

ercise. Have that spirit always, and pray always, but not 
out loud. 

It may not be out of place to speak a word here in refer- 
ence to attitude in prayer. Always remember that prayer is 
an address to God. Of course, such creatures as we are 
should only approach Him in the most humble and reveren- 
tial manner. Our Methodist brethren kneel down in prayer, 
Presbyterians generally stand up. Either is proper and scrip- 
tural. But sitting upright is neither. It is not respectful or 
reverential. The tallest archangel in Heaven stands in God's 
presence. Shall a "worm of the dust" remain seated while 
addressing the Deity. 

If we ought to "rise up before the hoary head," what 
attitude becomes us when speaking to the " Ancient of 
Days," "The King of Kings and Lord of Lords!" My 
own habit is to request the whole congregation to stand during 
prayer, or to kneel down, according to circumstances. If 
there are many prayers offered it is best to vary the attitude, 
as some persons, the aged and weak, can not continue to 
stand. 



ATTITUDE IN PRAYER. 51 



ATTITUDE IN PRAYER. 



(< I will, therefore, that men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands 
without wrath and doubting.'' — I. Tim. ii. 8. 



Nothing can be called of small importance connected 
with our approach into the presence of the most august Ruler 
of the universe. A moment's reflection will persuade us that 
any office connected with the service of the great God as- 
sumes proportions far transcending any earthly function. 
Every action becomes significant when connected with so 
important a ceremony as the worship of God. 

Where reverence and respect are due, the failure to 
render them must proceed from ignorance, indifference, or 
contempt of the requisition. But neither of these should be 
predicated of those who claim to be children of the King of 
kings, whose authority and claim to all homage and adora- 
tion it is certainly unnecessary here to establish. 

Pre-eminently, in prayer, we presume to approach into 
the immediate presence of God, and we, " who are but dust 
and ashes," undertake to speak to the great and holy Jehovah/ 
This fact should suggest to us the necessity of the profound- 
est reverence, the most unfeigned humility and self-abnega- 
tion. If men prostrate themselves before earthly potentates, 
what posture or office would adequately signify our homage 
to the " Blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and 
Lord of lords?" If we order our words aright before hu- 
man authority, and have respectful reverence for their pres- 
ence, how much more careful and respectful should we be in 



52 THE SOUL WINNER. 

our approaches, when we undertake to speak to infinite Wis- 
dom and infinite Majesty ! The fate of Nadab and Abihu, 
and of the men of Beth-shemesh, should warn us of irrever- 
ent approaches into His presence, who is a consuming fire to 
all sin. 

The proper attitude of those who come into His presence 
might be left to the sense of propriety in every reverent and 
intelligent mind ; but it may be profitable and edifying to re 
call some of the instances of such approach among those who 
worshipped God acceptably. 

First, I mention prostration as a mode practiced from the 
eailiest ages, and most becoming in seasons of great affliction 
and profound humiliation. Joshua and the elders of Israel, 
after the defeat of Ai, continued a whole day prostrate in 
prayer before God. Subsequently David and the elders of 
Israel worshipped in the same manner. So Job, in the season 
of his great afflictions, worshipped God, prostrate in His 
presence. Indeed, it seems the most appropriate way that 
worms — dwellers in the dust — can approach into the presence 
of the great God, the Majesty of Heaven. And even the 
fourand-twenty elders in heaven prostrated themselves be- 
fore God, casting their crowns at His feet. And, most won- 
derful of all, the Son of God himself, in his fearful agony in 
Gethsemane, is represented as praying prostrate before God. 
Then, with what awful reverence and profound humility does 
it become us to approach him ! But though suited to certain 
seasons, and most becoming certain passages in the Chris- 
tian's life, prostration is neither necessary nor practicable on 
all occasions. 

In the second place, we find that kneeling before God has 
been practiced by the great and good in all ages, as a proper 



ATTITUDE IN PRAYEE. 53 

and respectful attitude in His presence. Daniel so prayed, 
and David, and Stephen the martyr, and Paul, and many 
more, and even the Saviour himself, so prayed. It is a sig- 
nificant and becoming posture, expressive of earnestness, hu- 
mility, and reverence, and is universally practiced by a large 
and zealous Church of Christians throughout the world ; but 
it seems to be most appropriate to private and family devo- 
tions, and is so practiced by a majority of all Christians. 

Finally, I mention the attitude that has obtained in our 
Church, and been practiced since the reformation among 
Presbyterians, viz., standing. It is strongly supported by 
Scriptural examples, and been confirmed by the practice ©f 
the Church, from the apostles down. In Solomon's grand 
prayer at the dedication of the temple, all the people stood 
up in prayer. So Jehoshaphat commanded all the people to 
stand upright while invoking God's favour. So they prayed 
in the temple and synagogue (Lukexviii. 13), and the early 
churches followed this custom, as testified by Justin Martyr, 
Origen, Jerome, Augustine, etc. The twentieth canon of 
the First General Council of Nice enjoined this mode on the 
whole Church, except on certain occasions and particular 
persons. This mode particularly recommends itself on ac- 
count of several minor considerations, such as being con- 
venient on all occasions, respectful, appropriate for all per- 
sons, and calculated to insure attention and wakefulness. 

We look in vain through the Bible and the lives of the 
devout, in all ages, for a single example of the irreverent 
posture of sitting in prayer. Reason, religion, and history alike 
condemn it as most disrespectful and irreverent. Of course, 
there are exceptions to this requirement, where age, disease, 
or decrepitude prevent its observance, but in no other cases. 



54 THE SOUL WINNER. 

The growing prevalence of this most irreverent and disrespect- 
ful habit of sitting during public prayer, which pains our eyes 
on every side, has induced me to lift up a protest against it. 



THE PASTOR'S PART. 



"Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock over 

which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers to feed the 

Church of God, which He hath purchased with 

His own blood." — Acts xx. 28. 



Whether you be pastor or evangelist, there are certain 
duties that belong to the pastor in revivals, which deserve 
some notice. In the first place, no one can take a pastor's 
place in his own church, during a revival or at any other 
time. Never try it. He is the bishop of the flock, and must 
so esteem himself and be esteemed. 

The success of a meeting for revival depends on him 
more than any other. I had about said more than all others. 
If he is alive and at work with a sincere desire to win souls 
for Christ, the meeting will be both pleasant and profitable. 
If he is lifeless and listless, sleeping when he ought to be 
working, the sooner you leave there, probably the better. 
People are apt to be very much like their preacher. Love 
and zeal are contagious, and I am sorry to say, indifference 
and laziness are even more contagious. 

Nothing short of a Divine command will ever get me 
back to some churches, or some preachers. Life is too 
short, and time too precious to waste much of it at indifferent 
Meroz or unbelieving Nazareth. 



THE PASTOR'S PART. 55 

God pronounces woes not only on Pharisees and hypo- 
crites, but upon those that are "at ease in Zion." The pas- 
tor should exhaust every means to rally all his people to the 
"help of the Lord" upon occasions of revival services. 
In spite of all he can do, a sinful gravitation will make 
many of them "settle on their lees." Special occasions should 
be seized to awaken them from so dangerous a lethargy. 
The way for the coming of the Lord should be prepared, by 
prayer and faith and repentance. Special services of prayer 
should precede and accompany the meetings of a revival. 
The church that is not a praying, working body, need not 
expect, and will not have souls added to it. Salvation goes 
forth out of Zion. God's time to favor her, is when His 
people "take pleasure in her stones, and favor the very dust 
of God's house." 

When preaching for a brother pastor in his church, I 
give him the pre-eminence he deserves. I always insist on 
his taking the leading part, and let me assist him. I always 
insist on his occupying his own pulpit on Sabbath morning, 
except under extraordinary circumstances. As there is no 
one who knows his people so well as he, so no one else can 
say to them what he can say and ought to say. And no one 
should have the influence he has among his own people. 
Let him use this for God and men. 

A wise pastor will be on the alert during a revival, to 
take advantage of every opportunity to reach all his people, 
and bring them under the influence of the Gospel. Nor will 
he fail to reach out after those who are not Christians, and try 
to win them to Christ. He should see that every part of the 
service is the best possible under the circumstances; the best 
singing, the best praying, the best ushers, the best working 



56 THE SOUL WINNER. 

the best service of every hand and heart. Don't leave things to 
do themselves, or be done by everybody. ''What is every- 
body's business, is nobody's." 

I generally ask a conference of the officers of the church, 
and secure a good man who will be responsible for proper 
heating and ventilating the house; another who will be res- 
ponsible for the lighting, and for the singing ; another for 
the seating of the congregation, etc. They may secure as 
many assistants as they wish. 

My memory often recurs, with pleasure, to a meeting 
once held at Selma, Ala., then without a pastor, when the 
responsibility for every part of the service was assumed by 
some faithful and efficient man. I never knew a more 
effective service. If some such course is not pursued, you 
will find yourself in a sea of troubles. The lights will grow 
dim ; the air will get foul ; there will be nobody to lead the 
singing; the fires will go out; the elders will lay the blame 
on the deacons ; the deacons will lay it on the sexton ; the 
sexton will lay it on the stove, or on the devil, as good 
Brother Barnes did; so between them all, it gets clear be- 
yond your control. Begin in time, and save your voice and 
your temper, and your friends. 

During a harvest, every moment, every hand, is needed 
to save the grain, or it is lost. Seasons of revival are harvest 
times for souls. Let every soul be praying and working. 
There is no time now for other occupations Things harm- 
less at other times, maybe sinful now; this is no time for 
amusements or secular conversation or concerns, except such 
as are necessary or unavoidable. Such seasons are limited. 
Only when the waters were troubled, was there healing in 



THE PASTOR'S PART. 57 

Siloam. Even the poor, willing cripple, was not in time to 
be healed. The five late virgins failed to get in. 

The pastor must be an " example to the flock" in this 
work and temper, as well as in every other. Let him say 
" Come," not go. So reads the last great command to the 
Christian, " Let him that heareth say Come." The man in 
the rear can not say " come." Paul said "follow me." So 
do you say to the people, and see how cheerfully they will 
come, who otherwise would wait. The Church is a congre- 
gation, a flock, and flocks follow leaders. 

It has been my good fortune to assist a number of such 
pastors. I need not say that it was both a privilege and a 
pleasure; nor need I hardly add that God honored and 
blessed such a servant. He always does. I had little to do 
but •' stand still and see the Salvation of God." Everything 
was ready for a revival; and God is always ready, so it came. 
It is no trouble to preach then. A man couldnt help it. It 
is no trouble to sing or pray or believe and be saved at such 
" times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord." 

In how sad and sorrowful contrast to this are some places 

I remember. It almost makes me chilly to think of them. 

Nothing prepared, nothing ready, no work, no prayer, no 

zeal! A funeral procession to the church, a dirge by the 

choir, and a "solemn assembly" of dry bones scattered 

around you ! Do you think that a man could preach there ? 

I honor Ezekiel, but I doubt if he ever had such an audience. 

His congregation of dry bones heard, and rattled, and stood 
up ! I have seen some that were too deaf to hear, too dead 
to rattle, and too lazy to stand up ! May God deliver me 
from such experiences. It is a crucifixion to any man with 
a heart in him. I have been crucified at such places, but I 
pray God to spare me in the future. 



55 THE SOUL WINNER 



THE PEOPLES' PART. 



" To every man his work.'' — Mark xiii, 34. 



Young gentlemen, learn in the outset that you can not 
do all the work, and ought not to do it all, and are not ex- 
pected to do it all. 

God has given "to every man his work," and part of 
your work, and a most important part, is to get other peo- 
ple to do their work. 

And the success of your ministry will depend very 
largely on your ability to get others to do their part. Xo one 
man can do the work of two. If you get ten to work, you 
will do ten times as much work as you could alone. So of 
one hundred. 

So far as possible every member of the congregation 
should be induced to take part in the song service. It is the 
only part in which all can take \n audible part. 

To this end, they should all be provided with song 
books. The hymns and tunes should be familiar. They 
should be sung with animation and spirit. 

Then the people should understand that the preacher is 
not expected to do all the praying. He is only the leader. 

Every soul should pray, and " with one accord," call 
upon God for His presence and blessing. 

Godly members of the church may often be asked to 
lead the prayers of the congregation, many of whom can do 
it just as acceptably as the minister. 



THE PEOPLE'S PART. 59 

Let these prayers be frequent, brief, and earnest. 

Then a most important part of the work can only be done 
by the members, in bringing the people to church. 

Those who do not come to church are a most hopleless 
class. The first thing to do is to get them where they can 
hear the Gospel preached. Their friends and neighbors can 
do this more effectively than the preacher. 

God lays this duty upon all His servants. " Go out 
into the highways and hedges and compel them to come in." 

That is strong language. It justifies and commands the 
most earnest and affectionate endeavors to bring the people to 
Christ and the Church. 

The importunity of love, the earnestness of entreaty, 
and the preserverance of faith will compel many a reluctant 
sinner to come to God's house. 

Andrew brought Peter; Philip brought Nathanael ; the 
four friends brought the paralytic, though they had to carry 
him to the house, and take the roof off to get him to Jesus. 

So persuade the people to bring their friends, and have 
their faith rewarded by their salvation. 

The people of Gennesaret are immortal in sacred annals, 
because they ran throughout the whole country, and carried 
about in beds, all that needed healing, to Jesus. 

I expect'to find more people from Gennesaret in Heaven 
than from Nazereth, where " He could do no mighty work, 
because of their unbelief." 

Persuade the people to imitate the noble example of the 
inhabitants of Gennesaret, and bring all their friends in reach 
of Jesus. 

Impress upon the people their responsibility in this matter, 
and the happy result of a faithful performance ©f duty. 



60 THE SOUL WINNER. 



THE PARENTS PART. 



'Train up a child in the way he should go; and when he is old, 
he will not depart from it." — Prov. xxii. 6. 



The world possesses but two sacred relics of our earthly 
Paradise, the Sabbath and the Family. But they are priceless 
relics, and both point us forward to the Eternal Sabbath 
Rest, and the "Paradise Regained" in Heaven. Upon 
these two pillars God has built His Church, of which Jesus 
Christ is the Chief Corner Stone. So long as these pillars 
stand the Church is secure. But the overthrow of either the 
Sabbath or the Family is the overthrow of the Church. 

This fact should alarm Christians to the imminent danger 
involved in the sad neglect of family religion. Men forget 
that the Family is a Church, the Original Church of God, in 
the world, with its Altar, its Priest, and its Sacrifice. They 
forget that the Altar was erected in sight of Eden, and ought 
only to cease its holy functions when the family enters the 
Heavenly Eden. Family worship is older than the Bible. 
Indeed, it belongs to the constitution of our race and is born 
of our deepest necessities. It belongs to nations that never 
had a Bible. The Chaldean had his Teraphim ; the Greek 
his Lares ; the Roman his Penates; the Chinese his Ancestral 
Tablets. 

It is only our Modern Christian who has undertaken to 
abolish the Church of God from his family. And the sor- 
rowful result has been to abolish God from thousands of 
homes, and raise up a Godless generation of children. It is 



THE PARENT'S PART. 61 

stated on good authority that not five per cent, of Christian 
families maintain any form of worship in their homes. Do 
you wonder, then, at the wide-spread infidelity, the utter 
disregard of the Sabbath, and the prevailing lukewarmness 
and worldliness of the Church ? 

Christians should remember that from the very begin- 
ning, God has made His covenants with families; witness 
Adam, Noah, Abraham, Jacob, David. Hear Him say, " I 
will be the God of all the families of Israel." — (Jer. xxxi. i.) 
How can He be the God of a family that never recog- 
nizes His authority, or worships His name; a family that has 
no altar, no priest, no sacrifice of prayer, no songs of praise ? 

Nor should we forget that God always blesses those fam- 
ilies that honor Him. Hear what He said of Abraham, — " I 
know Abraham, that he will command his children and his 
household after him, and they shall keep the way of the 
Lord, to do justice and judgment, that the Lord may bring 
upon Abraham that which He hath spoken of him."— (Gene- 
sis xviii. 19.) 

Do you wonder that God said, ' all nations of the earth 
shall be blessed in him.' 

But remember, Ebal always stands over against Gerizim. 
If God blesses the families that honor Him, He curses those 
that dishonor Him. Hear this awful malediction — "Pour 
out thy fury upon the heathen that know Thee not and upon 
the families that call not on Thy name, for they have eaten 
up Jacob, and devoured him and consumed him, and made 
his habitation desolate." (Jeremiah x. 25.) 

That was the prayer of an inspired man, one of God's 
greatest prophets. May Mercy interpose in behalf of those 
families in our land that never " call upon the name of the 



62 THE ^OTL WINNER. 

Lord.'' May God save them from the curse of " Jeroboam the 
Son of Nebat. who made Israel to sin : " — and from the 
upon the sons of Eli: who "made themselves vile and he 
restrained them not." 

If God has made any duty of parents plain in His word, 
it is the duty of training their children to love and serve 
Him. 

"Hear. O Israel; the Lord thy God is one Lord. And 
thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with 
all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words which 
I command thee this day. shall be in thy heart, and thou shalt 
teach them diligently unto thy children ; and thou shalt talk 
of them when thou sittest in thy house and when thou walk- 
est by the way. and when thou liest down, and when thou 
risest up."' — (Deuteronomy vi. 4-9.) 

How can any parent obey this solemn com: vho 

has no family altar: no worship in his home; no household 
God — who never prays with his children, nor teaches them 
to pray, or praise God in the family circle ? 

Observe ! You can not, as parents, neglect and ignore 
these solemn and positive injunctions; no excuse will avail: 
they are not given as a matter of choice, they are imperative. 
Mark: " Thou shalt!" Hence by their omission you tacitly 
set at naught the counsel of God. 

il IsGod in this house?" asks the traveler in Green - 
land. If they answer yes. he enters ; if no. he goes on. Is 
God in your house, or is it Godless? His blessing waits for 
an answer. 

What an illustrious example of parental fidelity is fur- 
nished by the patriarch Job. and recorded in the first chapter 
of. probably, the oldest book in the world. M Job sent and 



THE PARENT'S PART. 63 

sanctified them (his children), and rose up early in the morn- 
ing and offered burnt offerings, according to the number of 
them all ; for Job said, ' It may be my sons have sinned and 
cursed God in their hearts.' Thus did Job continually." Do 
you wonder that God said of such a man, "There is none 
like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that 
feareth God and eschevveth evil." Do you wonder that God 
made him "the greatest of all the men of the east?" You 
need not wonder that God blessed and honored such a man. 
It is God's way. 

He does it yet. God loves to hear " the voice of prayer, 
of rejoicing and salvation in the tabernacles of the righteous." 
It is a voice heard nowhere else. 

No stream can rise higher than its source. The foun- 
tains of piety are in the family circle. If those fountains dry 
up, the stream must cease to flow. If they are poisoned, the 
stream becomes a source of death, and not life. 

How is it in your family ? 

Here is God's command. 

Have you obeyed it? 

Here is His blessing on the Church in the house. Can 
you claim it? Here is His curse on families that "call not 
on his name." 

Have you invited it ? 

I pray you seriously to consider these things, and say 
with noble John Howard — "Wherever I have a tent, there 
God shall have an altar." 



64 THE SOUL WINNER. 



THE MORNING SERVICE. 



"In the morning sow thy seed." — Ecclesiastes, XI. 6. 



Young Gentlemen: — In conducting evangelistic meet- 
ings you will soon discover the value of a daily morning 
service, and never willingly dispense with it. In the first 
place, life is too short to wait a whole day for an opportunity 
to preach the Gospel once. Better have three services a day 
than only one. Again, the blessing must come in answer to 
prayer, and a meeting for prayer should be held, at least, 
once a day. 

The evening will generally have to be devoted to 
preaching the Gospel to the unconverted, who do not attend 
the morning weekday services. And many aged and delicate 
people and godly women can only come in the day time. 
And you will discover that your dependence for help will 
be found largely among these classes. Then insist on a 
service for prayer every day. I call it a '* morning service," 
because my expeiience has taught me that the morning is 
the best time. The people are fresher, more alive and active 
than after dinner, especially in warm weather. And so is the 
preacher. 

The morning service brings the people out, and gives 
them time for work, in going to see others, and inviting them 
to church. The day is divided better than by having both 
services in the afternoon. Little time is left between the 
services, for work or rest, if they are both in the afternoon. 



THE MORNING SERVICE. 65 

Some at a distance cannot attend both, and some will not, 
when they come close together. The preacher himself needs 
rest between the services ; at least I do. 

Ten o'clock in the morning I have generally found to be 
the best hour. It is not too near the morning or noon meal 
to prevent housekeepers from attending. Consult their con- 
venience. Don't fix your hour to suit the bankers and busi- 
ness men ; they will disappoint you. Your day congregation 
will be made up principally of the faithful women of the 
church, with occasionally a faithful man. These are His 
"jewels," 'who speak often one to another.' Of course, 
there are circumstances which may make another hour pre- 
ferable. 

In cities there is often a partial suspension of business at 
noon, and their dinner hour is later than in towns or the 
country. There the noon hour may be best. The largest 
attendence upon a week day service I ever saw was at 
Charleston, S. C. at noonday. It suited them best. But gen- 
erally, ten o'clock in the morning is the most convenient. 

I generally limit these services to one hour, as many 
business men and women cannot leave their business longer 
than an hour. But let it be an hour of earnest, active prayer 
and praise and exhortation. Let no part of the service be 
long ; short prayers for a definite object ; short and appropri- 
ate hymns ; and short talks on practical subjects. I seldom 
preach a sermon on such occasions. I think it is best not to 
do so. It is a meeting for prayer, particularly, and only so 
much of praise and exhortation as to relieve the service of 
weariness. 

A talk of ten or fifteen minutes on some appropriate 
theme, (as prayer, work, faith, or repentance,) followed by 



66 THE SOUL WINNER 

an earnest prayer and by an animated hymn. I have found 
most pleasant and profitable. This order may be repeated 
until the close of the hour. Long prayers, long hymns, or 
long sermons are fatal to a morning service, (or any other, ^ 
under ordinary circumstances. 

If a ministerial brother present is in the spirit of the 
meeting, and can pray or speak to edification, ask him to 
take part. Otherwise, let him wait. The vast interests of 
souls should not be jeopardized by mistaken etiquette. A 
lifeless prayer, or an inappropriate speech, may undo the 
work of days of earnest effort. I have seen it done, and 
maybe done it myself. For this rerson I do not generally 
throw the meeting open for general remarks. Many good 
people are not wise people. They do not understand the 
fitness of things. The unity of effect of the services is often 
destroyed by untimely remarks. 

I had an experience at Mobile once which taught me a 
lessen, when a lay-brother and a stranger took an occasion of 
this sort, in time of profound interest in the church, to lecture 
the good women on pride. I thought it was both untimely 
and unjust, and said so. But the damage had been done. 

Be careful then about opening the meeting too wide. 

A preacher must be v:ise, as well as harmless. 



THE EVENING SERVICE. 67 



THE EVENING SERVICE. 



"In the evening withhold not thy hand." — Ecclesiastes, xi, 6. 



In your evangelistic work, young gentlemen, you will 
discover that the evening (or night) service will have to be 
given largely to preaching to the unconverted ; as your 
morning service should be largely given to the church mem- 
bers. 

The unconverted do not generally attend day services, 
so you must try and reach them at night. 

But all the services should at first be directed to arousing 
the church to its duty, in getting them earnestly to work 
and pray for God's blessing, without which all your preaching 
will be in vain. 

Salvation goes forth out of Zion. The church is 
God's divinely appointed agent to reach the unconverted. 
Out of it must go the influences which must save men. Or 
rather in answer to her prayers, God sends His Spirit, which 
alone converts sinners. It is " not by might, nor by power, 
but by my Spirit, saith the Lord of hosts." 

You remember Pentecost was preceded by ten days of 
earnest prayer, and do not expect Pentecostal power until 
the church and preacher are baptized with the Holy Ghost. 
Then preach like Peter to the unconverted, and expect them 
to be saved, and you will not be disappointed. 

Of course, you will understand that nothing but the 
Gospel can accomplish this result. It alone is " the power of 



68 THE SOUL WINNER. 

God unto Salvation." Many other truths are valuable, and 
many other themes maybe appropriate, sometimes; but 
nothing is either appropriate or valuable, now, but the Gos- 
pel of " Jesus Christ, and Him crucified." 

I begin by setting forth the need of this Gospel, by 
showing the lost and hopelesjs condition of the sinner. For 
it is certain the sinner is blind to this great fact. Paul says 
the Gospel is "hid to them," because the god of this world 
has blinded their eyes. While you cannot open their eyes, 
you can show them that they are so blinded, and persuade 
them to come to Him who alone can open their eyes and 
save their souls. 

The ruin of sin is not only frequently asserted in the 
Scriptures, but strikingly illustrated by many significant sym- 
bols, as — captivity, blindness, leprosy, death, etc. Many of 
the miracles and parables of our Saviour set forth this great 
truth in the most solemn and awful light. These will furnish 
you most fruitful and striking themes for your discourses to 
sinners. 

The sermon which I remember best, and which probably 
first aroused me to a sense of my hopeless condition, was on 
Dives and Lazarus, preached by Dr. Stuart Robinson. In 
my own ministry, I have found those themes most fruitful 
of results, which set forth the utter ruin of sin and the free 
grace of God, in His Son. There is no use offering salva- 
tion to those who do not believe they are lost. They who 
think they are whole, will not want a physician. The Saviour 
first showed the Samaritan woman her sins, and then showed 
her the Fountain which cleanses sin. Let this divine method 
be the order of your ministry. 



THE EVENING SERVICE. 69 

And be sure, young gentlemen, that you preach no 
emasculated gospel. Men are not sick, they are "dead in 
trespasses and sins." They are not out of the way merely; 
they are lost beyond recovery by any human means. They 
are not only alienated from God, but are enemies of God, 
though they may not be conscious of the fact. These are 
sorrowful facts, but they are true facts, and all are commanded 
to speak the truth, in love. No untruth ever saved a soul, 
and it is not only useless, but sinful to preach it. 

You will discover that these "hard doctrines," as they 
are sometimes called, are the only doctrines that meet the 
wants of the soul, and lead it to Christ. Peter's sermon on 
the day of Pentecost, was harder than you are accustomed to 
hear, and more fruitful than you ever knew of. Mr. Spurgeon 
never shunned to "declare the whole counsel of God," con- 
taining the utter ruin of sin, the helplessness of the sinner, 
the Sovereignty of God, and Salvation by Grace ; and you 
know the result of his faithful ministry. Compare it, if you 
please, with the work of some other man who "preached 
another Gospel," with equal ability and learning. 



70 THE SOUL WINNER. 



THE SINGING. 



" Sing praises to God, sing praises.'' — Ps. xlvii. 6. 



From the beginning, praise has been an important part 
of the worship of God. God enjoined it. ''Let everything 
that hath breath, praise the Lord.'' David's choir was 
perhaps the finest ever organized. The Psalms were the an- 
cient songs of the church. The value of this part of the ser- 
vice can hardly be over-estimated. No man who remembers 
his mother's singing can doubt this. The remarkable success 
attending the evangelistic work of Mr. Moody and Maj. 
Whittle, was due in no small degree to the song service con- 
ducted by Mr. Sankey and Mr. Bliss. 

And I believe that hundreds of souls have been won to 
Christ through the inspiring singing of Mr. Hopper, the 
efficient aid of our Kentucky evangelists; now a faithful 
minister of the Word. For my own part, I attribute much of 
the success of my labors in the mountains of Kentucky, to 
his singing the "Songs of Zion." In some places, his was 
the only voice heard, because the people had no hymn books, 
and no training in sacred singing. The church has not al- 
ways availed itself of this powerful auxiliary. But, recently, 
there has been an encouraging revival of its use. Many men, 
gifted in song, have been employed in this service, and are 
lending most valuable assistance to the evangelists and preach- 
ers. We need more of these "Sons of Asaph" to sing the 
gospel as the "multitude of the Heavenly Host" did at the 
Nativity. 



THE SINGING. 71 

While I can not say I am opposed to choirs, I am heartily 
in favor of congregational singing. I believe it is Scriptural, 
and I am convinced it is best. Let trained voices lead the 
singing, and let all the people praise God by joining in the 
song. The Methodist Church owes much of its success to the 
fact that they have always made much of singing, and all 
took part in it. I do not know that I ever knew a Method- 
ist preacher who did not sing; and many of them sing well. 
I know of no reason, physical or ecclesiastical, why Presby- 
terian preachers, or any others, should be dumb when God's 
praises are sung. 

It is a matter of importance that the man who leads the 
congregation, should know how to do it, when they come to 
sing as well as to pray. He would be a bad leader who 
would not pray, and not a very good one who would not 
sing. It sometimes occurs that there is no one else in the con- 
gregation who can lead the singing, and if the preacher can 
not do it, it must be left undone, very much to the detriment 
of the service. I am not much of a singer myself, but I re- 
member the songs my father and mother sang in my child- 
hood, and if nobody can do better, I sing them. 

The selection of the songs is a matter of no small import- 
ance. Many of the recent and fashionable songs are unfit 
for the service of the sanctuary, and some of them positively 
irreverent. What would you think of one dedicated to ( 'My 
Trundlebed," (found in a new and popular hymn book), or 
that other one, "Hold the Fort, for I am Coming." I am 
not sure, but "Satan leads on" all such sacrilegious songs. 
There are some precious Gospel hymns in the new pub- 
lications. Use them by all means, but do not forget that age 
has detracted nothing from the value of those grand old songs 



72 THE SOUL WINNER. 

of our fathers and mothers, found in our church hymn books. 
You can not improve on "Jesus, Lover of My Soul/' "Rock 
of Ages," "Am I a Soldier of the Cross," etc. 

By all means select familiar hymns. When people are 
assembled to worship God, is no time to be taking lessons in 
music. It is well enough to have people taught to sing, and' I 
have always employed teachers of sacred music to instruct 
my own, but not at the time of public worship, or in seasons 
of revival. Let the solos, duets and quartets alone. Tney do 
well enough probably for picnics and parlors, but I never 
knew a successful revival carried on with such singing. 

And my experience teaches me that choirs are dangerous 
things to have in the church. Like dynamite, they must be 
handled very tenderly, or they are liable to go off, at the 
wrong time. There seems to be something in the atmosphere of 
the organ loft, which affects the head. It sometimes elevates it 
above the pew and pulpit, too. Some good preachers, I have 
known, who might be named the " men afraid of their 
choirs." Pity them, and avoid their choirs. 

A precentor to lead a large congregation, is a positive 
advantage, provided he has .both grace and good sense. 

I am not opposed to the organ, but I am opposed to let- 
ting it usurp the pulpit, and the singing too. Set it on the 
floor, and let it modestly lead the praises of the whole con- 
gregation. It is a very ambitious instrument, and it is hard 
to keep it out of a high place above the people and the pulpit. 
But if you want to achieve the best results, keep the pulpit 
and the Gospel uppermost. People sing best on their feet, but 
when the choir stands up, let everybody stand. If you do 
not, there is a breach created, and the choir generally does 



THE SINGING. 73 

all the singing, with the consent of the congregation. Have 
no divisions. 

And don't forget the inspired hymns of the church. I 
can remember when the Psalms formed a precious part of the 
worship of God ; and I am sorry to perceive they have been 
almost entirely ignored by our modern makers of singing 
books. The 23rd or 46th Psalm is worth a cartload of some of 
the new and fashionable church music. But whatever you 
sing let it be sung with spirit. Sing like Paul and Silas at 
midnight in the Philippian jail, so that the prisoners 
heard them, and God, too. Don't feel under any compul- 
sion to sing every verse in the hymn. Some are too long, 
and some may not be appropriate. Provide books for every- 
body to sing, whether they sing artistically or not. God only 
hears the melody of the heart. See to it that the singing is 
worship and not entertainment, addressed to God and not to 
??ien. 



VISITING. 



"I have taught you publicly, and from house to house." 
Acts xx, 20. 



When you remember the great commission, " Go ye 
into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature," 
you will need no argument to persuade you that your preach- 
ing must not be confined to the pulpit. Indeed, most of your 
preaching, and probably your best preaching, must be done 
outside of it. Jesus " went about doing good." His exam- 
ple is your command. "Go and do likewise." The preacher 



74 THE SOUL WINNER. 

who preaches only in the pulpit, will not only fail in his 
duty, but fail in the fruits of his ministry. Paul "warned 
men with tears," preaching from " house to house." If you 
ever hope to have any measure of his sucsess you must follow 
his example. Jesus never preached with more power or suc- 
cess than he did to one man, by night ; and one woman, by 
the well. And Nicodemus and the woman of Samaria are 
the glorious fruits of His personal ministry to two souls. 

I have received thousands of people into the church, and 
I would say that nine-tenths of them, probably, were reached 
by private and personal appeal. Go to see the people in 
their homes, and shops, and stores, and wisely and affect- 
ionately persuade them to come to Christ. Thus you make 
the Gospel personal and particular. You bring it home to 
each individual conscience ; you adapt, it to his particular 
case ; you make him feel that it is for him and he fieeds it. 
These ends can not be attained by popular preaching in 
the pulpit. 

In your visiting among the people, do not become what 
Dr. Dabney would call "a parish vagrant," going about dining 
and gossipping, playing croquet or lawn tennis, and neglect- 
ing the first great duty of your life and calling, which is to 
persuade men to be saved. Some silly people may admire 
you as an expert player, but wise people will lose respect for 
you as a faithful preacher of the Gospel. There may be occa- 
sions when you can find time for such recreations (though I 
never did), but they should not be frequent, nor conspicuous. 

Paul who said, "this one thing I do," found no time, 
I dare say, for amusements, which have little object but to 
kill time. When he wrote Timothy to give himself wholly to 
these things, he made no mention of those things which en- 



VISITING. 75 

gage so much of the time and attention of some men who 
are in the same holy calling. 

The time is so short, the work so great, the need so ur- 
gent, the issue so trancendent that I confess to a secret sus- 
picion of the sincerity of a preacher who can waste days in 
silly amusements, or in idle conversation. He neither "gives 
himself wholly" to his great work, as commanded, nor does 
even the " one thing," without which he does little or noth- 
ing. 

No wonder you see so many fruitless lives in the church, 
and so many hopeless men out of it. There is a sad want of 
real earnestness and application to the greatest work God 
ever called men to do. At twelve years of age Jesus said 
He must be "about His Father's business," and His whole 
wondrous life is an illustrious example of labor, and love, 
and sacrifice. It should be our inspiration and model. No 
home was too humble for His footsteps ; no soul too vile for 
His compassion. 

The hand that planted the garden of Paradise opened its 
pearly gate to the dying thief. The love that fills the foun- 
tain of life quenched the soul thrist of the poor, nameless 
woman of Samaria. If that hand has opened your heart, 
or that love has quenched your thirst, it will be your duty 
as well as your pleasure to commend these heavenly gifts to 
those who perish by the way. 



76 THE SOUL WINNER. 



THE PRESS. 



" He went out and began to publish it much." — Mark I, 45. 



Probably no agency of modern times is so powerful as 
the press, both for good and evil. It stands next to the pul- 
pit in its influence for spreading the Gospel. Indeed, it is 
only another way of preaching the Gospel to every creature. 
It behooves us therefore to use it in every legitimate way. 
No man can estimate the mighty power of the Christian liter- 
ature of our day. The religious newspaper finds its way into 
tens of thousands of homes, and reaches hundreds of thous- 
ands of people. Many of these people never go to church 
or hear a sermon. Many of them can not go. 

I make it a rule to see some good religious newspaper in 
every home in my congregation, if it is possible, and it is 
generally possible, through the liberality of the editors. I 
can not remember the day when the Presbyterian Herald 
was not a weekly and welcome visitor to my father's 
house; and no man can know its influence for good in mould- 
ing the character of the children in that home. 

Nor should the secular press be ignored or neglected in 
your efforts to win men to Christ. These journals reach tens 
of thousands of homes which never see a religious news- 
paper. Few families are without a local or metropolitan 
secular paper. Many of these papers are edited by earnest 
Christian men, who are willing and anxious to lend their in- 
fluence for the Church and Christ. 



THE PRESS. 77 

I do not think the ministry or the Church use this pow- 
erful agency enough. Spurgeon once preached to a few 
thousand in the Tabernacle. He is still preaching to hundreds 
of thousands through the press. So of Cuyl^r and Talmage 
and others. So may we, in our humbler way, and smaller 
sphere. 

Besides the newspapers, there are other powerful auxili- 
aries of the pulpit, furnished by the press, in the form of 
religious literature, — books, pamphlets, tracts, cards, etc. Our 
churches have yet to learn the inestimable value of the Col- 
portage work. I do not know any man in the church, be he 
professor or preacher, who is doing a more valuable work for 
God and man than the colporteur, who is placing in thous- 
ands of homes the Word of Life, and the best literature of all 
ages. Who of us can preach like Bunyan, in the "Pilgrims 
Progress, or Baxter, in the " Saint's Everlasting Rest," or 
Alleine, in the "Alarm," or a'Kempis, in the "Imitation of 
Christ?" Yet these are the immortal preachers the colporteur 
places in thousands of homes no other preacher ever enters. 
No man is more welcome to my church and congrega- 
tion than the colporteur with his treasures richer than silver 
and gold. Invite him to your homes and your people, and 
give him the endorsement of your influence and example. 

Besides this, the tract furnishes every soul winner a 
ready and simple and often effective means of bringing men 
to Christ. The world will never know what it owes to Rich- 
mond, and Ryle, and Newman Hall, for the precious light 
they have shined into millions of hearts and homes by their 
tracts. If I have accomplished little else by my ministry in the 
mountains, I have put the simplest and sweetest messages of 
the Gospel in thousands of homes, by means of these little 



78 THE SOUL WINNER. 

tracts. They invite the people to church, and I believe have 
brought many of them to Christ. 

Use them liberally and judiciously in your work. They 
are now furnished in almost every form, and to suit every 
demand. Of course, all are not good, any more than any 
other human production. Use your judgment in the select- 
ion of tracts as you do of books and hymns. I have found 
the smaller copies more readily received, and more generally 
read. They are so cheap that a few dollars will provide 
thousands of them suitable to almost any condition or cir- 
cumstance. The "Silent Evangelist" is an admirable method 
of preaching the Gospel in the streets and lanes, and out in 
the highways and hedges. 

I hope I need not say that the greatest agency furnished 
by the press is the printed Bible. And your best service for 
lost men is to place the way of life in their hands. You will 
be surprised how few people read it, with any regularity, if at 
all. Urge them to do so, and give them the opportunity by 
providing them with it. 

If they are able, they can buy it at a nominal price. If 
too poor, the " American Bible Society" generously donates 
books to all such; or liberal friends will share the expense. 
When my face and voice are forgotten among the poor 
denizens of the mountains, I hope to preach to them through 
the Bibles and Testaments I placed in their humble homes. 
How often have I seen them walk miles over rough 
mountain roads for a Testament, and gladly receive the 
sacred treasure, and how diligently and patiently spell out its 
precious lessons of life from God's Holy Word ! 



METHODS. 79 



METHODS. 



" lie had bewitched them with sorceries." — Acts viii. II. 



Probably I ought to say a word about the methods used 
by some engaged in the evangelistic work. So far as I am 
concerned, I have never found any occasion or authority to 
use any method, except preaching the Gospel and urging 
sinners to accept Christ. That was certainly the apostolic 
method, and the history of the Church in all ages has proved 
it to be amply sufficient. 

I have always been suspicious of methods not counte- 
nanced in God's word, and which relied more upon human 
devices than upon the Holy Spirit. So far as I have been 
able to discover, the precept and practice of the church has 
been the simple and earnest proclamation of the Gospel, with 
prayerful dependence upon God's Spirit to make it effectual. 
And it always seemed to me to be dishonoring God to 
substitute some other agency to reach men, than the Divine 
Agent in regeneration. I need not say that any other source 
of conversion is a delusion and a snare. 

No human resolutions, or experiences, or ecstacies, can 
change a man's heart, or make him a child of God. He 
"must be born again." True preachers have never found it 
necessary to convert the pulpit into a stage for buffoonery, 
nor the church into a circus to draw a crowd. Such methods 
may be necessary to men who can not preach the Gospel, 
or do not bilieve in its Divin* power to draw and conver 



80 THE SOUL WINNER. 

men. But to those who believe this Gospel "to be the power 
of God unto Salvation ; " all such tricks are mean and con- 
temptible. 

No man ever preached so simply and so plainly as the 
Divine Master, and no man ever drew such crowds. In His 
footsteps have followed all the great preachers from St. Paul 
to Spurgeon. 

These new methods may excite curiosity, may amuse the 
multitude, may give notoriety to the performer, may even 
stir up feeling, and enlist supporters, and multiply members, 
but unless other and Diviner agencies are invoked, and se- 
cured, the result will be a barren disappointment. The play 
will not be worth the candle ; harm will be done instead of 
good; the cause of religion will be damaged; and souls de- 
ceived by false hopes. 

The means of Grace are plainly set down in God's word, 
and they do not include any theatrical performances, nor 
startling announcements, nor sensational appeals, nor scur- 
rillous language. These methods bring discredit upon the 
ministry, and injury to the cause of Christ. 

Be content, young gentlemen, to preach the Gospel as 
Peter and James and Paul preached it ; in humble reliance 
upon God, who alone can give it success. 

It has always seemed to me that all these questionable 
methods to attract men, and influence them, have their com- 
mon origin in a want of knowledge of the source of our power, 
or a want of faith in God. To one who believes that " Paul 
may plant and Apollos may water, but God gives the in- 
crease;" it is not necessary to explain the folly and futility 
of all reliance on any human method to convert men. We 
are comamnded to " preach the Word." God alone does the 



METHODS. 81 

saving. No human logic or eloquence much less human 
devices and demagoguery can convert a soul. It is " not by 
might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, saith the Lord of 
Hosts." 

Ignorant people may counfound tears with repentance, 
and confession with conversion, and shouting for salvation ; 
but no man who knows the Scriptures will ever be so deceived. 
To resort to any device to entrap men into the Church, 
is a surrender of the Divine way of Salvation ; is exchanging 
David's sling for Goliath's armor; and dishonoring the Holy 
Spirit, and inviting the displeasure of God. 



THE CHILDREN. 



Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto Me ; for of 
such is the kingdom of Heaven." — Matt, xix, 14. 



I hope it needs no argument, young gentlemen, to im- 
press upon you the great importance of preaching the Gospel 
to the children. The world must be saved in its childhood- 
Every year added to one's age after youth, diminishes the 
chances of salvation. You will find plenty proofs of this in 
your ministry, and in every church in the land. Statistics 
show that a large majority of Christian people are converted 
before they are twenty years of age. There are many good 
reasons for this fact ; but wt need not pause here to consider 
them. God is especially solicitous about the young. 

He says, " I love them that love me, and those who seek 
me early shall find me." His command is " Remember now 



82 THE SOIL WINNER. 

thy Creator in the days of thy youth." His exhortation is 
" Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not, 
for of such is the Kingdom of Heaven." His last commis- 
sion to the Apostle Peter was " Feed my lambs." This is 
our commission to-day. And we will be wise to heed it. 
I would recommend that you, habitually, cultivate a 
style of preaching plain enough for children to understand. 
They will then be attracted to the church, and instructed by 
your discourses. 

But it will be necessary sometimes to hold special services 
for them, when all the exercises can be more especially adapted 
to the young. Those services I generally hold Saturday 
morning or Sunday afternoon, when I am engaged in a pro- 
tracted meeting. And these are among the most fruitful of 
all the meetings. Let all the parts of the service be short and 
full of animation, and let the songs, prayers and speeches be 
adapted to children. 

The lectures should be very plain and pointed and illumi- 
nated by apt illustrations. A short and appropriate story is 
worth a dozen long sermons to children. Above all, let it 
be full of the Gospel. There is no theme on earth compara- 
ble to the Gospel for children as well as the aged. Any child 
of good intelligence can understand this Gospel when properly 
explained. The want of information on this point, I think, 
has filled the church with doubt about the conversion of child- 
ren. Men want the child to become a man to be saved. 
Jesus said a man must become a child before he can be 
saved. (Matt. 18th chapter). I would recommend you to 
take Jesus' side of the controversy. 

Preach the Gospel to them for their acceptance, and ex- 
pect them to believe and be saved. But do not expect them 



THE CHILDREN. 83 

to have the experience of old people. Remember they are 
children. Their exercises will be those of children. They 
will believe and repent and obey as children. But it will 
probably be a more genuine faith and obedience and re- 
pentance than a man's. And I am glad that this is the testi- 
mony of many of the wisest and best of God's servants. 

During your meetings parents should be exhorted and 
encouraged to bring their children to church. They will gen- 
erally be the first reached by the Gospel, and will draw many 
an old sinner to the Savior. " A little child " has led many 
a godless father to a better life and into the Kingdom of 
Heaven. 

Always advise parents to have their children sit with 
them; for which many good reasons could be given, if nee 
essary. But you will doubtless discover them before you 
have long been in the service. If I had my ministry to go 
over again I would devote much more of it to the young. It 
is the most hopeful and most profitable part of your work. 



84 THE SOUL WINNER. 



THE INQUIRER. 



Thus saith the Lord." 



I hope you will find in your ministry many persons in- 
quiring the way of life. A word as to the best way of dealing 
with them may not be amiss here. Of course, Paul's answer 
to the great question of the Philippian Jailer must always be 
your answer to every such question. But even that answer 
will often have to be explained, for no one is so blind and 
helpless as a convicted sinner. In all your dealings with 
men take the word of God. It is the Sword of the Spirit. 
The Devil will turn the edge of every other weapon. Jesus 
said "It is written." So do you say. Practice with that 
sword as a French fencing-master with his rapier; so you can 
resist every attack of the Devil, and a carnal heart. Dis- 
trust your own wisdom, God's word answers every doubt, 
and cavil, and excuse. 

There is no imaginable difficulty in the way of any sin- 
ner, omniscient 'wisdom has not met in the Bible. Take it 
with you and study it. Search the Scriptures, and you will find 
the whole equipment of a soldier of the Cross, every imple- 
ment of a Master workman. But do not forget that the seat 
of sin is in the heart, and not in the head. Therefore do not 
waste your time in arguments with men. Use Philip's divine 
method and say to the objector, " Come and see.'' 

One sight of Jesus is worth w ten thousand arguments. 
Show them their helpless condition and show them Jesus' 



THE INQUIRER. 85 

love, grace, power, and willingness to pardon, save and re- 
ceive. Let the heart be the point of attack, and not the 
head. If the heart surrenders, the citadel is taken, and the 
city is won. Appointments for meetings with inquirers may 
be made with profit. They may follow the preaching service, 
or be held in the pastor's study at a fixed hour. But I would 
exercise a wise discretion in the selection of persons to in- 
struct inquirers. All good people are not wise. Some will 
do more harm than good. I tried several before I found one 
who could show me the right way. 

The Science of Salvation is not learned out of books, 
nor is it the monopoly of learned men. It is heart knowl- 
edge, and is often hidden from the wise and revealed to 
babes. Its very simplicity constitutes a main difficulty. 
Men are, naturally, like Naaman and want to do some great 
thing, and refuse the plain and simple way of salvation. 
There is a seeming disproportion between the great end, and 
the simple means. They can hardly believe that they have 
nothing to do but to do nothing, and let Jesus do it all. Believe 
and be saved is too easy and cheap a way to God and life and 
heaven. So the head reasons. Show them they can do 
nothing else or more. They must do that or perish. It is 
humbling to human pride and foolishness to human wisdom ; 
but we need to be humbled and enlightened. It is the only 
way to salvation. 

Take Paul's example, and the jailer's, and Lydia's, 
Bartimeus', and your own ; say 

u Drops of grief can ne'er repay 

The debt of love I owe ; 
Here, Lord, I give myself away, 

'Tisall that I can do!" 



36 THE SOUL WINNER. 

Impress upon every inquirer the importance of now, and 
the danger of delay. There is no necessity and no excuse for 
postponing one's salvation. It is a sin. God is ready and 
willing and able to save now, as He ever will be. The 
terms can never be lowered or changed. It is always and 
everywhere, " believe on the Lord Jesus Christ." To refuse 
to do that or postpone it is to aggravate the sin and increase 
the danger. It is adding rebellion to all other sins. God 
commands all men everywhere now to repent. No reason- 
able man can doubt the necessity of it, and the infinite im- 
portance of it. To refuse to do it is an offense against reason 
and an insult to God. 

Salvation is a gift ; the gift of eternal life. The man 
who refuses that gift of God chooses eternal death. And to 
postpone it is to refuse it for that time, and surrender any 
claim upon God's mercy. He says " now is the accepted 
time ;" " now is the day of salvation," " choose ye this day 
whom ye will serve.'' 

God is reconciled. Redemption is purchased. "All 
things are now ready." If the sinner is not saved now it is 
his own fault, his sin and shame. ''Whosoever will, let him 
take the water of life freely." Infinite love can say no more, 
and do no more. 



THE MOURNERS' BENCH. 



THE MOURNERS' BENCH. 



"Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted," — 

Matt, v, 4. 



Probably I ought to speak a word about this method of 
conducting revival services, formerly much used in our own 
church, and at present common among our Methodist breth- 
ren. Though in vogue at the time of my own converson, 
and having the sanction of such men as Drs. Robert J. 
Breckinridge, Stuart Robinson, Edward P. Humphrey and 
John C. Young, Sr., all of whom preached during the great 
revival when I became a Christian, I can not recommend it 
as the best method of leading souls to Christ. In the first 
place, I can find no authority for it in God's word, either by 
precept or example, and am wary of methods which lack such 
authority. But a more serious objection lies in the fact that 
something seems to be placed between the soul and Christ. 
I need not say that any such hindrance is dangerous and 
misleading. Only Christ can save ; no ordinance or work 
or means. 

The soul should be brought directly to Him. His own 
words are, "Come unto Me." "Look unto me," not to the 
church,or the sacraments, or the minister,or prayers, or tears, 
or repentance. 

The Mourners' Bench seems to place an obstacle in the 
way of coming to Him. The sinner is invited there to seek 
salvation by prayer, and penitence, and confession. Instead 
of coming to Christ they come to the Mourners' Bench. 



88 THE SOUL WINNER. 

They seek an experience instead of seeking the Saviour. 
They are looking within instead of looking without ; looking 
at self, and not to the Saviour. 

I know this was my own experience. After several 
days' fruitless and painful search I was delivered from my 
fears and doubts by being directed to go at once to Christ by 
a wise and godly mau, my old preceptor in mathematics, be- 
loved Dr. Ryors. I honor his memory. Probably one bet- 
ter instructed or more intelligent would have known better 
than I did and not have lodged at the Mourners' Bench. 
But I have known some older and wiser than I repeat my 
experience. 

During a revival in a Southern town I was once induced 
by the importunity of brethren to invite persons forward to 
the Mourners' Bench one night. It was soon filled, and I 
soon found that a large majority were professional mourners. 
They had been coming forward for years, and were " no 
better but rather grew worse." Only two out of some dozen 
or more were willing to accept Christ. The others simply 
wanted the prayers of the church. They were not seeking 
the Saviour, but an experience, or comfort, in an act of out- 
ward obedience. I have never repeated that invitation. 

The Scriptures everywhere invite men to Christ ; to 
accept Him by a simple act of faith as a Saviour. Every 
other invitation is misleading and dangerous. The Church 
ought always to pray for sinners, and sinners ought to mourn 
over their sins ; but there is no merit or salvation in these 
things, as many ignorant persons imagine. 



POLEMICS. 89 



POLEMICS. 



"Neither shall they learn war any more." — ha. i, 4. 

There have been periods in the history of tne Church 
when controversy was necessary ; when godly men had to 
" contend for the faith once delivered to the saints." And 
there have been other periods when such controversy was 
not necessary, and still it went on, greatly to the distraction 
of the Church and detriment to the cause of Christ. 

Remember all men can not see and believe alike. It 
may not be best for them to do so here and now. There- 
fore content yourself with differences you can not help, di- 
visions you can not heal. In your preaching generally, and 
especially in seasons of revival, let alone those controverted 
points which divide Christian people, and preach the great 
doctrines of salvation in which all Evangelical churches agree. 
They are the essential ones, and will give you all the scope 
you want in your ministry. 

In twenty years preaching, I do not remember ever once 
giving offense to our brethren in a series of revival services, 
and I hope I have always been true to my faith and my 
Huguenot fathers, who died for that faith. And sometimes, 
at the organization of new churches I have had to preach on 
Baptism, that direful source of so much bitterness, and I do 
not remember any of an opposing faith who took umbrage 
at the statement of the truth as we hold it. 

We can be divided in faith, and be united in love. But 
except upon such unavoidable occasions, I do not preach 



90 THE SOUL WINNER. 

upon controverted points of doctrine, because it is not 
necessary, and because it is not wise. In such seasons it defeats 
the very end of your preaching — the salvation of men — by 
setting the people to quarrelling instead of praying. In 
many instances I have had the most cordial support of 
brethren of the Methodist, Baptist and other churches, 
because I preached the same great doctrines of grace held by 
them in common with my own church. 

In order to love others it is not necessary that they 
should agree with us in everything. I suppose no two 
persons in the world ever agreed on every proposition. But 
brethren can agree to love each other and differ in their 
judgment upon many questions where human knowledge is 
imperfect. 



CONCENTRATION. 91 



CONCENTRATION. 



"Give Thysely wholly to them." — I Tim. iv, 15. 



Paul who said, " this one thing I do," understood the. 
power of concentration, and his extraordinary career illus- 
trated that power. This rule should apply to your sermon, 
and to every other effort for God's glory. The man who is 
"Jack of all trades" is generally good at none. The 
sermon that covers the whole scope of revealed truth in an 
hour, is too diluted to feed the lambs, much less the sheep ; 
too scattered to penetrate the skin, much less the heart. A 
sermon should be like a rifle, and not like a blunderbuss. 
Some sermons penetrate like a bullet, others simply pepper, 
like birdshot. The sinners conscience is iron clad. It 
needs a single steel pointed shot to penetrate it. 

One single purpose, and one mastering thought ought to 
control every sermon. The sun glass burns by focalizing the 
rays. So learn to focalize your thoughts until they burn 
their way into the heart and conscience. Other kinds of 
preaching is dissipation, and not concentration. People en- 
joy it maybe, and forget it certainly, even the text. Not 
only should concentration characterize the sermon, but every 
effort of the service. During your meeting, let every other 
church enterprise be laid aside by preacher and people. 
Satan is very smart and will operate a diversion when he can- 
not secure a defeat. 

I remember ©nee how the effect of a stirring sermon to 
sinners was dissipated by an appeal for money to fix the 



92 THE SOUL WINNER. 

church. At another church during a revival, the good 
women forgot the souls of the perishing, to finish some 
quilts in the sewing society. Such good preachers and 
people forget that there is a time for all things, and that a 
revival is not a time for quilts, or covering the church; good 
works, though they be in their season. One great purpose 
ought, then, to subordinate every other, that is, the glory of 
God in the Silvation of souls. We are so constituted that it 
is very hard to do two things at once. 

If the world is allowed to occupy your time during a 
revival, it will be at the serious loss of spiritual power and 
effort. This is a reason why it is hard to reach men with the 
Gospel, who are immersed in business, and attend church 
only occasionally. And this is largely the power of protracted 
effort. It concentrates the mind for a season on greater and 
eternal truths. The power of the Gospel is such that I 
believe few men can withstand it when faithfully, repeatedly, 
and earnestly preached to them from day to day. Many a 
sinner feels this and avoids the danger of being saved, by 
staying away. 

Let the motto of the church as well as of the minister be 
" this one thing I do." It should always be our motto ; but 
during a series of meetings -it should be severely restricted to 
saving sinners, and nothing suffered to distract our attention 
or effort from this most important work for the glory of 
God. 



PATIENCE. 93 



PATIENCE. 



"In your patience, possess ye your souls." — Luke xxi, 19. 



Young gentlemen, I want to say to you what Paul said 
to the Hebrews, that "ye will have need of patience." You 
will very often meet with the "contradiction of sinners," 
and saints too, and I do not know a more difficult attainment 
than to bear patiently such contradiction. You will notice 
that Peter (2nd Peter, 6) puts it high up among the 
christian graces. Indeed, it is so high, some of us scarcely 
attain it. But nevertheless it remains a solemn and sacred 
duty to try. 

Paul gloried especially in the patience of the Thessalon- 

ians, (2nd Thess. 4,) and our Lord commends from His 
throne in Heaven the patience of the churches at Ephesus 
and Thyatira, (Rev. II, 2, 19.) Then it willbe wise to culti- 
vate it, and receive His divine approval. A thousand things 
will tax it and try it. The indifference of the church ; the 
lukevvarmness of professors ; the covetousness of christians ; 
the worldliness of the young ; the inefficiency of officers ; the 
stupidity of the sexton ; the lateness of the congregation ; the 
slowness of the singing, etc., etc. 

Paul never appears greater (or more unreasonable) to 
me, than when he says that he "gloried in tribulations," and 
that "tribulation worketh patience." (Rom. v. -3.) I fear, 
you will find that it works the other way with common peo- 
ple. To sit in a cold church and wait for a late congregation 
and preach to a handful of people in the back of the house 



THE SOUL WINNER. 

and take up a collection for Foreign Missions and get a few 
pennies and nickels ; and then go to a hotel, and pay your 
way back home, are tribulations which do not generally work 
patience. But they ought. Paul was right. Let us try to 
imitate his example. 

I have nearly bit the blood out of my lips, to keep my 
peace, when dogs and babies conspired with a smoking stove 
and a tittering girl, and a slamming door to destroy the effect 
of the Gospel I was trying to preach. Then you will need 
patience, young gentlemen. May Grod lelpyou; for if He 
don't you will fall. It won't do to get mad. You lose the 
tory when you lose your temper. Remember Job, and 
"let patience have her perfect work." It is crucifixion, but 
you must i; crucify the fle- 

Persuade the boys to lock the dogs up ; coax the mothers 
to leave the babies at home; ask the sexton to fix the stove- 
pipe, or build no fire, and take the tittering girl to God in 
prayer. Do any way rather than get mad. and make the 
mother mad. and the girl mad. and the Devil glad. 

You will often be sorely tried by the sinners as well as 
the saints. T .1 refuse your most earnest appeals. 

They will sit unmoved under your most impassioned en- 
aties and arguments. They will choose death when you 
offer them life. They will trample on the precious blood of 
Christ on their way to the pit. It will amaze you, and exas- 
perate you ; but " possess your souls in patience." You can't 
help it. They treated your Lord and Saviour the same way. 
Don't expect everybody to be saved. They won't do it. 
Their heart is fully set in them, to'do evil. 

Your business is not to save men, but to preach the 
Gospel to them. Some will believe and be saved. Thank 



PATIENCE. 95 

God for that. You are not responsible for the results. God 
will take care of that. I have known some mighty men 
shorn of their strength like Sampson by losing their temper. 
Remember "he that is slow to anger is better than the 
mighty ; and he that ruleth his spirit, than he that taketh a 
city." (Prov. 16-32.) 



PUNCTUALITY. 



"Be instant, in season ; out of season.'' — 2 Tim. iv, 2. 

Nothing that concerns the success of the Gospel and the 
salvation of men can be considered a matter of small im- 
portance. Therefore I beg you not to think punctuality in 
meeting your engagements beneath your notice. If the 
service is to begin at seven o'clock, don't get there five 
minutes after seven. Better be on time, or five minutes be- 
fore it. If you are late, the people will follow your example 
and come late themselves. The minister should be an ex- 
ample to the flock in this, as well as in other things. 

When Gen. Hamilton on several occasions excused him- 
self for being late in his engagements with Gen. Washington, 
and laid the blame on his watch, his chief told him he "must 
get a new watch or he would get a new secretary." God 
wants a man to be as faithful to his engagements in a far more 
important matter. 

Dilatoriness is a bad habit and engenders worse conse- 
quences. It forfeits the confidence of your congregation in 



96 THE SOUL WINNEK. 

your fidelity to your engagements, and sets them a bad ex- 
ample which they will not be slow to follow. I make it a 
point of conscience to be present and begin the service at the 
appointed time. I do not wait for the people to come. 
There are always some faithful ones who will be present, and 
many others who will not be ; and their number will be greater 
if you indulge them by waiting. The more you wait the more 
they will wait. Some people are very regular in their bad 
habit of always being behind time. 

The way to remedy the evil, as far as it can be remedied, 
is to be punctual in beginning your service, and remind them 
that the five foolish virgins failed to get in, at last, when they 
came too late. 

I once walked some miles to hear a distinguished 
preacher in New York city, and walked back without hear- 
ing him, because I was too late, as the services had begun 
and the door was locked. I was disappointed, but com- 
mended his wisdom. It is generally better to stay at home 
than disturb a congregation by going in late. This may, in 
some measure, be avoided by reserving some seats near the 
door for 'the late comers. Some may be unavoidably de- 
tained by business engagements, as physicians, or by do- 
mestic duties as mothers of young children. Reserve some 
rear seats for them. 



THE MOUNTAIN WORK. 97 



THE MOUNTAIN WORK. 



"Go ye into the world and preach the Gospel to every creature. "- 

Mark xvi, 15. 



I need not say to you that holding big meetings in 
churches is not evangelistic work proper. It is important 
work and ought to be done, but do not deceive yourselves 
with the belief that it is the only kind of work God intended 
an evangelist to do. And I am of the opinion that the evan- 
gelistic work is a most important part of .all our ministry. 
"Go ye into all the world and preach the Gospel to every 
creature;" until every creature has heard that Gospel, our 
orders are peremptory and our duty is plain. While many 
of you may be settled pastors (as I have been during most all 
of my ministry), yet I do not think you will be exempt from 
sometimes "doing the work of an evangelist." To me it has 
been among the most pleasant and profitable parts of my 
ministry. But I hope God may honor some of you by call- 
ing you into the purely evangelistic work, either as a home 
or foreign missionary. 

To such as undertake this work in our own destitute 
country I would offer a few suggestions. I call it the 
" Mountain Work," because most of our unevangelized ter- 
ritory lies in the great mountain ranges of Virginia, West 
Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, Georgia 
and Alabama. These " regions beyond " the blue grass and 
turnpikes and railroads and colleges are almost appalling in 
their extent and destitutions, and present the greatest field for 



TOE SOUL WINNER. 

evangelistic effort open to the church tl is side of heathen 
lands. Scores of counties are without a single church or 
a preacher qualified to teach the way of life. There are 
thousands and tens of thousands of people who never saw a 
church or Sabbath school or a religious paper or an educated 
preacher. Thousands of them do not possess a Bible, and 
could not read it if they did. Of course, most of these people 
are unsaved. You must not suppose that they are barbarians 
or heathens. They are a brave, hardy, generous race of 
men. God never made a more hospitable people nor one 
more grateful for services done them, nor more appreciative 
of the Gospel. 

After years of observation and experience among them 
I can say no people are more approachable, more anxious to 
learn the truth, and none more ready to receive it when 
properly instructed. They have their faults, and they are 
neither few nor small; but I am not in condition to cast any 
stones at these sinners. They are about as good as the ma- 
jority of the people I know. When I remember how humble 
their homes, how few and scanty are their comforts, how 
small their opportunities, how limited their resources and 
how destitute their spiritual condition. I wonder they are not 
much worse than they are And when I remember h 
eagerly they listen to the Gospel, how they walk miles to 
hear it, how they sit for hours on bonds or the ground to 
learn it, how gladly they receive it, and how generously they 
try to support it out of their poverty, I have no words to ex- 
press my admiration for them. 

They are a "peculiar people," and to succeed among 
them requires more than zeal and learning of books. They 
are not educated, but they are not foolish In some respects 



THE MOUNTAIN WORK. 99 

they are wiser than their teachers. What time others have 
given to the study of books they have given to the study of 
human nature. And the knowledge of human nature is as 
important to a preacher as the knowledge of books — maybe 
more so. They possess in no ordinary degree the gift of 
common sense, the most uncommon kind, and the most val- 
uable. 

All book learning will not avail for the want of it. But 
a mm with common sense in his head and the love of souls 
in his heart will succeed among the wildest of these rough 
children of the highlands. 

In the " Field Notes" which comprise a second part of 
this volume, you will find some account of this kind of work. 

Some three years of my ministry was spent in preaching 
to these people ; and the result of this experience I may 
briefly sum up for your information. I went among them as 
one of them ; eating their food, sleeping in their cabins, 
speaking their language, learning their wants and working 
for their salvation. They knew no better than that I had 
always lived that way. They were my Father's children, and 
my brethren ; and I went with a message to them of love and 
compassion. I hope I never forgot the dignity of my office, 
nor the sanctity of my profession. Paul became " all things 
to all men," but he was still " Paul an apostle and servant of 
Jesus Christ." 

Where there was no church I sometimes carried a great 
tent, (or "fly" as the soldiers would say) and made rough 
seats of planks or logs. Sometimes I preached in court houses, 
jails, and in school houses in the country ; often in their little 
homes, as I had opportunity. The songs were their own, 
such tunes and words as they could sing. Once I remernber 



100 THE SOUL WINNER. 

we had only " Home Sweet Home," and we wore out the 
dear old song, "Alas and did my Saviour bleed." Their 
songs were few, and their tunes fewer ; but God did not 
mind that. 

The preaching was the plainest — the elements of the 
Gospel, or 'rudiments,' as Paul says, and that is what saves 
Paul " determined to know nothing but Christ and Him 
crucified." If you know any more, don't tell it in the 
mountains. I preached as long as I pleased, and they 
listened till I was tired. " The old, old story" is new to them. 
If the lights were dim, (and it was often dark,) it made no 
difference. I had no notes to bother me, If the dogs came 
in, the boys ran them out. If the babies cried, the mothers 
carried them out. I've got hundreds out and never made 
them mad. Don't do that. Say to them when you begin, 
" not to fear to go out with the baby if it cries, and bring it 
back when quiet." You must learn this or give up your 
mountain work ; for the babies and dogs will be there in 
force, and will require judicious handling or break up your 
meeting. 

Preach the Gospel only, and plainly ; leave art, polemics 
and pyrotechnics alone. You are to win souls, and not to 
war with them. I seldom ever allude to any controverted 
subject, because there is no controversy among evangelical 
churches about the great essentials of religion. 

Don't undertake to teach morals or manners. That is 
not the Gospel. Let them have their own way of dressing, 
cooking, talking and eating. You try to save their souls, and 
let others look after the non-essentials. Besides, the Gospel 
is a great educator. Dr. Lindley said the Zulus never wore 
a shirt until converted. 



THE MOUNTAIN WORK. 101 

Above all don't criticize their faults, nor laugh at their 
ignorance of books and things. I have known some good 
men who destroyed all their influence for good by such con- 
duct. You will sometimes meet with opposition, from some 
over-zealous brethren of other denominations. They will 
look upon you as trespassers on their hereditary domain of 
ignorance and bigotry. Teach them a better way. Set them 
a nobler example. Paul's instructions to Timothy cover the 

case exactly. " The servant of the Lord must not strive, but 
be gentle unto all men ; apt to teach ; patient ; in meekness 
instructing those that oppose themselves." 

The people will not be slow to discover the truth, and 
honor God's servant who preaches the Gospel. These people 
are in the dark. Let in the light and the darkness with its 
owls and bats will flee away. I do not receive them into the 
Church or baptize them until they are instructed in the way 
of salvation. 

God has made the way plain, but men are spiritually blind; 
and even when converted many see men as trees, walking. 
They need plain and patient instruction. So far as possible, 
I try to put a Bible or New Testament in every hand. And 
they read it with avidity. It is new and wonderful to them. 
Any religious reading is always eagerly sought and gratefully 
appreciated. Put only sound orthodox literature in their un- 
tutored hands. Publishers of religious literature are glad to 
supply such need to a liberal extent. 



102 THE SOUL WINNER. 



ORGANIZATION OF CHURCHES. 

For this cause I left thee in Crete, that thou shouldst set in or lev 

the things that are wanting, and ordain elders in every city, 

as I had appointed thee. — Titus i, 5. 



In the exercise of your office as an evangelist it will be- 
come your duty often, I hope, to organize churches, and set 
up the ordinances of God's house among the destitute. 
Every community should have a church ; for without such 
advantages it will be difficult to maintain the Gospel, and 
reach and educate the people. The Church is God's own 
organization to accomplish this great work. I need not say 
that no other society or association or guild can take its 
place. 

In the organization of a church, the most important 
matter is the selection of its officers. .It will often happen 
that they are strangers to you. In this case you must rely 
upon your own judgment, and learn from their neighbors, 
who are the men of character and standing in the community 
— men of good report, men who possess the requirements 
Paul lays down in his letters to Timothy; and above all, 
men who give evidence of their love and zeal for God's 
house. 

Of course, you will sometimes be mistaken. Bat in the 
organization of thirty-five churches, with two hundred officers, 
I think I can count on the fingers of one hand all who have 
proven unworthy. I made it a rule never to organize a 
church without plainly and simply pointing out the main 



ORGANIZATION OF CHURCHES. 103 

doctrines of the church, and wherein they differ from sister 
churches. If a person does not agree with you, he had 
better go elsewhere, if convenient. It is easier to get such a 
person in the church, generally, than to get him out, if i;e is 
troublesome. 

I do not ask every candidate for membership to subscribe 
to every doctrine of the church ; because there may be honest 
differences among members ; nor is such a requirement 
necessary to salvation. But every officer must accept the 
doctrines of the church, its order and form of government, 
as plainly laid down in the directions for ordination. Their 
duties should be plainly set forth and solemly enjoined ; and 
a book of Church order, and Confession of faith put in their 
hands, if practible. 

Such infant churches will require special attention and 
faithful nursing by a wise and good pastor. See to it that 
they get such if possible ; and preaching as often as possible. 
A prayer meeting conducted by the officers and members of 
the church should be organized at once, and never discon- 
tinued. The prayer-meeting is not only the pulse of the 
church, but the heart. Of course a Sabbath-school should be 
organized with the very best members for officers and teachers; 
and it should run all the year. God is to be served, and 
men are to be saved in winter as well as summer. Satan 
takes no vacation from work. His business of destruction 
runs the whole year round. Secular business and day schools 
run through the winter, why should the Sabbath school be 
suspended? If the people are too poor to provide Sabbath- 
school books, (which is seldom the case,) then the Board of 
Publication will cheerfully supply the want. 

It is be?t for all concerned that the church and Sabbath- 



104 THE SOUL WINNER. 

school be taught to be self-supporting, so far as possible. 
Christian charity was not intended to foster pauperism. It 
is a wrong to the church at large, and a crime to the individ- 
ual church. "Let everyone lay by him in store as God hath 
prospered him." There are no exceptions to this rule. But 
your work will not be done until you have taken steps to se- 
cure a house of worship for the new church. It must have a 
local habitation and a name, or it will not succeed as it 
should. 

God dwelt in a tent in the wilderness ; and will do it 
yet, whenever necessary. But few people can not provide a 
house of worship, if encouraged and instructed. It need not 
be fine (probably, ought not be), but it should be convenient 
and comfortable. 

Whenever I organized a church, I forthwith took up a 
collection, or subscription to build a house of worship; and 
most of our churches throughout the mountains have com- 
fortable houses, and some of them very nice ones. When- 
ever necessary to give them assistance in money, it was gen 
erally done by their brethren in the older churches, and 
wealthier communities ; but the people were encouraged to 
do all they were able to do themselves. 

The location of a church is a matter of more importance 
than is generally supposed. God's house should have the 
best place on the best street or road, most accessible to a 
majority of the people. More than once I have declined to 
assist in building a church on a back street, or undesirable 
lot. Once I failed to find a suitable location, except in a 
man's front yard ; and the Middle Fork Church in Breathitt 
County, Kentucky, stands in the front yard of generous Jesse 
Spicer to-day. He not only gave it, but helped build the 



ORGANIZATION OF CHURCHES. 105 

church out of his slender means. The old soldier has gone 
to his reward, but the church still stands a monument to his 
memory. 



THE VOICE. 



• i Let your moderation be known unto all men." — Philippians iv. 5. 



You can hardly overestimate the value of a good voice 
in your ministry. Therefore, it behooves you to cultivate it 
and preserve it. Next to a good heart, and a good head, a 
good voice is the most important equipment of a preacher. 
Though naturally, it may be weak and small, it is capable of 
large development and improvement by assiduous care and 
cultivation. And it is wonderful what powers of endurance 
such delicate and sensitive organs possess. First of all, don't 
be afraid to use it. It was made to use, but not abuse. I 
once believed in clergyman's sore throat, and thought I had 
it. When preaching at the First Church in Louisville, it was 
all 1 could do to preach twice on Sunday, and conduct the 
prayer-meeting Wednesday. Often my throat was so sore, 
and my voice so hoarse, I could hardly preach on Sunday 
evening. From a child I had had a tender throat, and colds 
generally settled there. I tried the various remedies used 
for such ailments in vain. 

When called by the Synod of Kentucky into the evan- 
gelistic work, I hardly knew how I could do such work with 
such a throat. But I determined to try. After preaching a 
week, sometimes I was nearly speechless, and my throat raw. 



106 THE SOUL WINNER. 

At Augusta, I remember, it bled. But I rested awhile, and 
tried it again. Gradually the muscles of speech (like all 
others) became hardened and developed by constant use, 
until I could preach every day for a month, with very litde 
discomfort. I have sometimes preached as often as three 
hundred times in a year. And so I found the remedy for 
clergyman's sore throat: Preach, and keep on preaching. 

The man who rides horseback but one day in the week, 
will be pretty sore ; but the man who rides every day will 
not feel it ; the muscles become accustomed to the exercise. 
So with the vocal muscles. Use them regularly, and often, 
and judiciously, and you will not have sore throat. I had to 
learn to do this, or am learning. Often I spoke too loud and 
long. Don't do that. Vary the tones of your voice, and as 
far as possible, use the conversational style. It need not be 
low or dull, but sometimes animated, and always lively. 

The exercise of preaching will often moisten your under- 
garments with perspiration. Never let them dry on your 
body. Put an overcoat on immediately after preaching, and 
repair to your room, which should always be convenient to 
the church (if possible), and put on warm and dry under- 
clothes after rubbing your body perfectly dry. I learned that 
valuable lesson from the eccentric and extraordinary evan- 
gelist George O. Barnes, who preached oftener in the same 
length of time than any man I ever knew, and with but little 
effect upon his voice. It has been of the greatest service to 
me. I advise you to practice it. It is not well to use the 
voice much, soon after preaching. At least not for me. 

I generally retire soon after reaching my room, and 
change my clothing, if at night. I believe this has enabled 
me to undergo labor in continued preaching for months, 



THE VOICE 107 

which I never could have endured otherwise. I do not think 
it advisable for the preacher to do the singing. It is right 
hard for me to keep from it ; but it is better not to sing when 
you have the preaching to do. I believe the singing is more 
trying on the voice than preaching. Let others sing, if they 
will, and you use your voice in preaching, or sing gently, as 
an example to others. But when necessary, do not hesitate 
to do both. 

The fewer poultices, gargles and troches you use, the 
better. Ten years ago I patronized them all. I have learned 
better now. I cheerfully give you the benefit of my experi- 
ence. Accept every remedy the kind ladies give you, and 
put them in your pocket, but not in your mouth or throat. 



THE USHERS. 



" Let all things be done decently and in order." — I. Cor. xiv. 40. 



Young gentlemen, if you will remember that the Church 
is God's house, it will help you to a proper understanding of 
the proprieties which belong to it. If a friend, or even a 
stranger, comes to your house, you meet him at the door, and 
show him a comfortable seat. The children of this world, so 
wise in their generation, never fail to avail themselves of the 
advantages of such courtesies. See how assiduous their at- 
tentions at all places of worldy amusements. 

Let us be as wise for God, and in God's house. When 
people are invited to His house, let His servants see that they 
are cordially received, and comfortably seated. This im- 



208 THE SOUL WINNER. 

portant service is performed by those we call ushers. And 
they are very important men in our estimation. So import- 
ant that the best men in the church are none too good for its 
duties. It is no easy matter to quietly, orderly, and com- 
fortably seat a congregation, especially on occasions when 
the church is crowded, as I hope you will often see it. The 
usher should be a genial man. A cordial reception to God's 
house is worth more than a dull sermon. I shall never for- 
get how useful in such service was my elder, John Gordon, 
of Louisville. Though he stood at his counter all week, he 
stood at the church door every Sunday, and cordially received 
every one who came. He worthily won the sobriquet of the 
" Handshaker." And the man who shakes my hand cor- 
dially is the man who shakes my heart. 

The girl who captured the bad boys and brought them 
from the play-ground to the Sabbath school was the girl who 
" smiled them in and smiled them out." 

Select such men for your ushers. Let them meet the 
people at the door and show them comfortable seats. Have 
enough of them to handle the congregation without delay or 
confusion. Always begin in front in seating the congration, 
and reserve the rear tiers of pews until all the rest are filled. 
In my church we have a rule that no one is to sit down be- 
hind a vacant seat, but move up and occupy it. Do not let 
a person monopolize a whole pew by filling up the end of it 
and keeping others out. This is neither " decent or in or- 
der " as everything ought to be done in God's house. Of 
course, al! these suggestions apply to churches where the 
seats are all free. I don't believe in any other kind. Neither 
does God, if I understand His Gospel. 

Have no one enter the house during the reading of God's 



THE USHER. 109 

word or prayer. These things are not mere formal parts of 
the service, as many suppose. No part of the service of the 
sanctuary is so important. Indeed, it is questionable whether 
it is not better to let no one enter after the worship is begun. 
I verily believe that more harm is done, generally, by the 
disturbance of the congregation and interruption of the dis- 
course than any good the tardy worshippers receive. Such 
seems to be the opinion of Dr. John Hall, of New York city, 
as I learned to my sorrow, when I failed to get into his 
church, though not very much behind the hour, which I did 
not know. 

Have all late comers seated in the rear of the church, so 
as to make no disturbance. When the preaching is begun 
let nothing interrupt the discourse, unless the house is on 
fire. 

Children should sit with their parents, and those not old 
enough or good enough to behave ought to be left at home. 
So ought the dogs. You will appreciate this advice when 
you have served a campaign in the mountains, which I hope 
you may do. 



HO THE SOUL WINNER. 



THE SEXTON. 



" lie that is faithful in that which is least, is faithful also in much.' — 

Luke, xvi. 10. 



I beg you, young gentlemen, not to be surprised or hu- 
miliated by having this humble minister introduced to your 
notice, ande^en your favorable consideration. By the time 
he has roasted you one day and frozen you another, and 
smothered you another with foul air, and suffocated you with 
black smoke, he will have grown in your consideration to no 
small importance. 

The man who has the comfort and even the health of a 
whole congregation at his disposal is no ordinary officer for 
good or ill. Indeed, during a series of meetings he is only 
second in importance to those who conduct the public serv- 
ices. At this very moment I am utterly disabled from preach- 
ing by taking a cold in an overheated house during a most 
interesting meeting. 

In the cold weather, during which most of your best 
work must be done, very many people will be kept away from 
the church by an inefficient sexton, who keeps the church 
either too hot or too cold; and not a few people have con- 
tracted serious sickness in such a church. There is no ex- 
cuse for this. Those who have the care of the church should 
not invite people to sit an hour or two in an ice-house or a 
bake-oven. And least o f all, to invite a preacher to .try and 
edify people in such a place. Somebody said he "never 
knew a man with cold feet converted." I know it is very 



THE SEXTON. Ill 

hard to warm a man's heart when his body is cold, or bring 
him to Christ when he is trying to get out of such a church. 

See that your church is comfortable. The sexton should 
be a man of intelligence and discretion. Anybody will not 
do for a sexton, as you might be led to suppose from your ob- 
servation. An African is especially unreliable when it comes 
to a matter of temperature. He is a tropical animal, and is 
not comfortable except in summer heat. Your church should 
be kept at about 65 degrees Fahrenheit, as the temperature 
most agreeable to a majority of people. Of course, some 
people will want the ventilators closed at 80 degrees, and 
some will want them open at 60 degrees. Neither you nor 
God can please everybody. Don't try it. 

Unless your sexton is a man of intelligence enough to 
regulate the heating and ventilating of the house, appoint a 
wise deacon or elder to take the oversight of it. A ther- 
mometer placed midway from the stove or furnace to the 
pulpit will keep him advised of what is necessary. No con- 
siderable body of people should ever be confined in a house 
without ventilation. If there are no other means, lower the 
windows, open the doors, or punch the glass out. Want of 
fresh air suffocates the speaker and puts the people to sleep. 
Don't convert the church into a " Black Hole of Calcutta," 
and smother the life out of the sermon and the worshippers. 
Let there be light and air both ; they are the life givers. 

And speaking of light reminds me of some dark places 
where I could hardly see how to preach — though I never use 
a manuscript. Have plenty of light. A dark church is a 
misnomer. It gives me the blues. It is suggestive of any- 
thing but God and heaven and happiness. Win the sinner 
from the ''Outer Darkness" by inviting him into the light, 
and to Him who is " The Light of the World !" 



112 THE SOUL WINNER. 



THE WEATHER. 



:> Thou, therefore, endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ." 

— 2 Tim. ii, 3. 

When you consider how largely the weather enters into 
our daily walk and conversation, I may be pardoned for say- 
ing a word about its influence in your work as a Christian and 
minister. And right in the beginning, I would say. go for- 
ward and preach the Gospel, and let God manage the weather. 
That is His business and not ours. We are often too much 
influenced by the moon and the almanac. Of course, when 
you have a choice between a dark and moonlight night, take 
the moonlight for your protracted services. But when the 
time comes for the work, don't wait on the moon. Some 
men are so moonstruck that they can't preach except by 
moonlight 

After some twenty years' experience I have come to the 
conclusion that when the people are in earnest the weather 
has very little to do with J the success of the Gospel. Bad 
weather does not hinder God from working, and some of the 
greatest revivals I ever knew were held in the worst weather. 
In a matter of life and death, men pay little attention to the 
comforts and conveniences of life. Everything is sacrificed 
for the supreme good. Now religion is a matter of life and 
death. Wiien men realize this, no account is taken of ordi- 
nary inconveniences. I find no record of Paul's ever post- 
poning a meeting on account of the weather, or moon, or 
roads, or horse race, or circus. He told -Timothy to be ' 'instan 



THE WEATHER. 113 

in reason and out of season." Death never waits for good 
weather, nor sin, nor Satan. They work in all seasons. Let 
us be as industrious in serving, as they are in destroying. 
Let us try to be as wise in our generation, as "the children 
of this world." All this is consistent with a wise selection of 
the best time for special efforts, when we have the choice ; as 
between wet or dry weather, and between warm or cold, and 
light or dark nights, and good or bad roads. But do not for- 
get that all weather is good for saving souls, and that the 
same God who rules the seasons, rules the hearts of men. 

I remember going once to preach for a dear young 
brother, now in heaven (beloved Barbee Betts), and found 
him in tears because the night was dark, the roads bad, and 
only a handful of people at church. I relieved him by telling 
him that God would manage the weather and the roads, if 
we would attend to our business of preaching the Gospel. 
This we did, and God sent a great revival in His church, in 
spite of both roads and weather. Life is too short, and its 
duties too urgent, and its interests too great to subject them 
to the changes of the weather, or moon, or roads. 

The Christian is a soldier; and the Christian life is one 
of conflict; and I do not know any way to glory which is not 
beset by difficulties and obstacles of some sort or other ; either 
bad roads, or bad weather, or bad men, or bad devils. Let 
us sing, 

u Since I must fight if I would reign , 
Increase my courage Lord, 
I'll bear the toil, endure the pain, 
Supported by thy word." 



114 THE SOUL WINNER. 



WHEN TO CLOSE A MEETING. 



" Be not weary in well doing. "—-2 Thess. iii. 13. 



It is a matter of no small importance to know when to 
close special revival services. Of course there is no fixed 
rule which should determine the matter, for each case must 
be a law to itself. As a general thing, I think Presbyterians 
do not continue such services long enough • others probably 
err in the other extreme, and continue them too long. 
There are several things which should enter into a determina- 
tion of the length of a meeting. 

1. The work to be done, the people to be reached. 
2. The interest in the meeting, the presence of God's Spirit 
in the church. 3. The attendance upon the services, if 
large or small. 4. The visible effect of the preaching, if 
encouraging or not. 5. The weather, the roads, etc., etc. 
If these conditions are favorable, I would say the services 
should continue until the work was done, the harvest 
gathered. 

If God's Spirit is manifestly present, the people inter- 
ested, and the attendance increasing, and the preaching be- 
ing blessed to the revival of the church, and the conversion 
of sinners, by all means continue the meeting until it is plain 
the effort should cease. There is danger of continuing too 
long ; after people become weary, after the harvest is gath- 
ered, after the work is done for that time. When these con- 
ditions exist, it is better to stop, or the people will close the 
meeting without the consent of the preacher. Of course, the 



WHEN TO CLOSE A MEETING. 115 

strength of the preacher must be considered; for we are all 
human, with the* limitations of the flesh. 

If one man is able to do all the preaching, and does it 
successfully, then let him do it all. The power of a preacher 
is accumulative. His influence grows upon the people with 
successive efforts. Especially is this true if he follows a well 
arranged plan of presenting the Gospel, and no other is likely 
to achieve large success. To introduce another speaker, is 
to run the risk of breaking the current, and scattering the 
effect of the services. If one preacher has the "ear of the 
people," and the results prove the effectiveness of his preach- 
ing, he ought to continue so long as he is able, or the work 
is finished. But I would not be understood that a good work 
must stop, because the preacher can not continue to its close. 
God is tied to no man or method. He often uses the 
humblest instrumentalities. I have seen successful meetings 
conducted, when several changes were made in the preach- 
ers. If God is present, the work will prosper. If He is 
not present, all human help is vain. 

I should caution you against discouragment in the be- 
ginning of such services. Learn not to "despise the day of 
small things." The greatest revivals have had the smallest 
beginnings. Your Bibles and the history of the church in all 
ages, will furnish you many examples for your instruction 
and encouragment. Churches and communities that need 
revivals, are generally the most lukewarm and worldly, and 
the hardest to get to use the means of grace for revival. The 
freezing man is most insensible to his danger. He don't feel 
it. Do not think to have a great revival in such a church 
without work and prayer, and faith and patience. Preach the 
word, and never doubt God's promise to honor and bless it. 



116 THE SOUL WINNER. 

I have sometimes preached where the "heavens were as 
brass, and the earth as iron," and my heart sunk in me while 
waiting for a cloud even as "large as a man's hand." But it 
eame and overspread the heavens, and rebuked my want of 
faith, and vindicated the truth of God's promise. "Be not 
weary in well doing, for in due season ye shall reap if ye 
faint not."' Remember the times and seasons belong to God. 
In His own time, which is the right tims, the expected bless- 
ing will come. 



ield • Motes. 



EXPLANATION. 



These notes, which I hope will largely explain them- 
selves, are added to illustrate that phase of religious work so 
much needed, and heretofore, so much neglected. When a 
young soldier, in the army, I often traversed those mountains 
and served with many of their hardy and' heroic sons. After- 
wards, as a physician, I had occasion to visit that country, 
and was more deeply impressed with their need of a Greater 
Physician and a Diviner Remedy than I could offer. 

In 1877, soon after I became a minister of the Gospel, I 
was appointed on the Committee on Home Missions, and be- 
fore the Synod of Kentucky, at Covington, I took occasion 
in my report to refer to the sad destitution of a large part of 
our State, especially in the mountains, and the culpable neg- 
lect of the Church in not sending them the Gospel. 

I remember what a storm it raised, and the young 
preacher might have been overwhelmed, but for the timely 
aid of Dr. Stuart Robinson, who came to his rescue and 
championed the cause. In 1879 the conscience of the Church 
was sufficiently aroused to make an effort to raise twenty-five 
cents per member for evangelistic work. Only about one 
thousand two hundred dollars were realized from this effort. 
But the leaven was at work, and in October, 1881 (soon after 
Dr. Robinson's death), the Synod, in session at Nicholas- 
ville, determined to undertake this great work in earnest. 
The immediate occasion and inspiration of the resolution was 
the generous offer from two lay members of Dr. Robinson's 



old church (Col. Young and Mr. Veech), to give as much as 
five thousand dollars to this work, if the Synod would do the 
same. The offer was gladly accepted, and the history of the 
Church for fifteen years is a glorious monument to the good- 
ness of God, and the fidelity of His people. 

The Synod of Kentucky alone has expended hundreds 
of thousands of dollars in this work, doubled its membership, 
planted churches in scores of counties and communities 
where there was no church before, largely increased her 
ministry and influence, and set an example which has been 
zealously emulated by her sister churches, all over the 
country. So widespread and beneficent in its influence, has 
this work been, that one of the great leaders of a sister 
Church wrote : "They represent a religious and educational 
work among the hitherto neglected mountain people of that 
interesting State, which has been more richly blessed than 
any similar work, as yet undertaken by any Christian body 
in the United States." Under the faithful leadership of Dr. 
T. D. Witherspoon and Dr. E. W. Bedinger, Chairmen of 
the Synod's Evangelistic Committee, assisted by wise and 
zealous men, the work has exceeded the fondest anticipations 
of its most sanguine friends, and received the richest tokens 
of God's favor. 

Consecrated men and women have traversed the high- 
ways and hedges, carrying the glad tidings of Salvation to 
thousands of hearts and homes that were sitting bound in the 
shadows of death, Isaiah's prophecy has been literally ful- 
filled. " The wilderness^and solitary plaee shall be glad for 
them; and the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose." 



REPORT ON HOME MISSIONS. 121 



ORIGINAL DRAFT OF REPORT ON HOME MIS 

SIONS. 



READ BEFORE THE SYNOD OF KENTUCKY, AT COVINGTON, 
KENTUCKY, OCTOBER l8, 1877, BY EDWARD O. GUERRANT. 



Fathers and Brethren: — 

While declining the honor of opening the discussion on 
this subject, I shall try to discharge my conscience and part 
of my duty, by offering some suggestions on the latter clause 
of this subject, that of Home Missions. I pass by the subject 
of Mission Sunday Schools, because of my limited experience, 
with the single remark that Kentucky offers a large field for 
this kind of work. A good Sabbath School may be organ- 
ized in nearly every country school house, where people of 
all shades of religious belief would gladly support a Sunday 
school, using the International lesson papers. In a recent 
visit to Eastern Kentucky by the State agent of the American 
Sunday School Union, he organized four such schools in two 
weeks, and had more applications for schools than he had 
time to devote to the work in that section. But it is especi- 
ally to the work of Missions I desire to devote the balance of 
this paper. 

When we are told that after the lapse of nearly one 
hundred years, there are less than ten thousand Presbyterians 
belonging to our branch of the church in Kentucky (which is 
the largest branch ;) and when we consider with this, the fact 
of the high character of its ministry from the very beginning, 
the educational interests under its control, the purity of the 



122 THE SOUL WINNER. 

doctrines and worship we claim for this church ; we need not 
stop to establish the fact that there is some flaw either in the 
organization of our church, or the practical application of our 
theory. When we consider further that the one hundred 
and thirty-three churches we claim in Kentucky, are congre- 
gated in less than one half the counties (forty) of the State, 
leaving the far greater part of the whole State still unoccupied 
by us ; a vast region of country extending from the Big Sandy 
river to the Mississippi, some five hundred miles, where a 
Presbyterian minister or member even would be as much a 
curiosity as a Mormon. Add to these facts the other one, 
that a very large part of the unconsecrated wealth of the 
State is found in the present membership of the Presbyterian 
church, almost unlimited means placed by the God of Mis- 
sions at the disposal of this church, and then draw your con- 
clusions. These are the facts ; if comparisons were not 
odious, we might say' that the Baptist church with less 
wealth, less learning, and less historic prestige has beaten us 
ten to one, in the work on our own ground. 

I said with this exhibit, there is a fault somewhere, 
either in our system or its application. None of us I suppose 
are ready to admit any flaw in our Jure Divino Presbyterian- 
ism. In its present form it has conquered all kinds of people 
and all kinds of error. No church has shown such vitality, 
or power, or adaptability. Then the fault must be in the ap- 
plication of the system to our wants. In short, the fault is in 
us, and not in our honored and venerable church. Let us 
briefly survey the conditions of successful mission work, and 
see how nearly these conditions are fulfilled around us. 

ist. ' We must have a field. Is it here? Yes, almost 
unlimited. Its very proportions discourage us. Of the one 



KEPOKT ON HOME MISSIONS. 123 

hundred counties of Kentucky, sixty are entirely unoccupied 
by our church. Of the one million people in Kentucky, only 
ten thousand are members of our Church, or one in one 
hundred. It need not be replied that though they are not 
taught by our ministry, or in our doctrines, still they are not 
destitute of religious teaching. While there are some few 
godly and well instructed men laboring among the unevange- 
lized classes, it is a sad fact that most of their so-called 
teachers are " blind leaders of the blind," dispensing doctrines 
so diluted, that it is questionable whether enough of gospel 
truth is conveyed to save the soul. 

A popular form of error, not uncommon in this better 
instructed portion of the State, has overspread all the moun- 
tains; and a pagan salvation by works and not by grace is 
the only dependence of a vast number of these people. 

To give you an idea of the destitution of the country in 
the regions beyond us, I need only tell you that in one days 
ride from Mt. Sterling, the Capital of Eastern Kentucky, 
there are four county seats which have no house of worship, 
and some of these towns contain hundreds of souls. They 
have jails and gambling hells, and drinking shops, but no 
house for God's worship. And these people are anxious to 
have God's word preached to them. I have had dozens of 
invitations, and could have preached every day to these peo- 
ple. They are hospitable, as all Kentuckians are ; more re- 
ligiously inclined than most of them, because less exposed to 
the snares of covetousness, ambition, intemperance, and 
fashion. Having no advantage of an educated ministry, they 
are exceedingly teachable. They love to go to church, and 
turn out enmasse, whenever offered an opportunity to hear 
one of our ministers. West Lexington Presbytery preached 



124 THE SOUL WINNER. 

to not less than two thousand on the third Sabbath of Sep- 
tember, in and around Owingsville; just on the border of 
the mountains. Surely nothing is wanting in the matter of a 
field for domestic Missions by our church. 

But I have only noticed the destitution in that vast sec- 
tion lying south and east of us, where the voice of the Pres- 
byterian minister is never heard. But is there no field for 
Mission work nearer home ? Have we no heathen at our 
doors ? Has the Presbyterian Church filled the measure of 
its duty even where it has a foothold ? Look around you, 
in your own towns and counties. How many more churches 
in your city, town, or county than there were forty years 
ago? How many more members? Ten thousand members 
in a population of hundreds of thousands, and half of 
this number in the cities and larger towns. Compare statis- 
tics cf our church in 1840 and 1877, this present year of 
Grace. And this in spite of the fact of great increase in 
population, wealth, general intelligence, morality and facilities 
for travel and commerce. The church has stood still, or 
gone at best only at a stage coach gait, while the world has 
moved away on railroads, steamboats, and telegraphs. 

Forty years ago there was one Presbyterian church in 
a city with 200 members. Now there are two churches with 
about the same membership. And this story is not so singu- 
lar as to excite comment. There is a sad family resemblance 
running through the whole list. 

Now is there any need for this ? I think not. The 
Gospel in all its pentecostal power is still here. The oppor- 
tunities and facilities for publishing it are here in greater num- 
ber and power than ever before. And the people are here 
crowds of them. No man would believe it uuless he took 



REPORT ON HOME MISSIONS. 125 

his pencil and counted up the number, how few people attend 
church even in Christian Kentucky. I would say not over 
one-fourth, even under the most favorable circumstances. 
Now among these three-forths lays the mission work. And 
mist of them are accessible. No outlay in God's service 
pays larger dividends than such labor. If permissible I can cite 
one recent instance in point that admirably illustrates several of 
these facts. Within a radius of three miles from a deserted meet- 
ing house in the upper country there were seventy uncon- 
verted adults. A meeting of two weeks brought forty-three 
of this number into the church. This case is only remark- 
able in its results. Every county in our Synod offers such 
fields, which, if properly cultivated, would yield rich harvests 
of immortal souls. 

2d. But time forbids any further remarks on the mis- 
sion field. It is everywhere. It threatens to crowd and choke 
us out of our sinecure citadels which we have held so long 
and luxuriously. Its spirit is aggressive, and its numbers in- 
creasing in geometric ratio. We must go out to meet them 
in the same aggressive spirit. It is true no less in spiritual 
than in carnal warfare, that no body of soldiers can sustain 
the shock of a charge — at rest. We must advance or be 
routed. And we have the sinews of war to do it successfully 
— both men and money. 

We have in Kentucky some seventy-five ministers. They 
are well endowed and educated, and better provided for than 
any of their brethren in the Southern church. Who can 
estimate the power of such a ministry if directed to this Home 
Mission work. Suppose there were seventy-five Pauls or 
men with Paul's zeal and consecration, or even Martyn's or 



126 THE SOUL WINNER. 

Brainerd's. What a change ! But the same Spirit that in- 
spired them is promised to all who ask. 

But if it were said, we have not men enough to occupy 
our large territory —the reply is ready — we can get them. 
Though our own great, rich State is sadly derelict in her duty 
of devoting her sons to the Master's service, other States offer 
their sons for our work, as many of them on this floor can 
testify to-day. We can get more men than we can get money 
to support them. 

3d. And the great wealth and extravagance of the 
country abundantly testify that there is no lack of money. 
We are a rich people. Take the membership of the Presby- 
terian Church of Kentucky, I doubt if any church of its size 
in the world represents as much material wealth. It is not un- 
common to find churches representing a million dollars worth 
of money. So that in the conditions for successful mission work 
we have nothing to desire ; a field more than equal to our 
ability ; plenty of men available wanting work, and un- 
bounded material resources for prosecuting the work. 

Now comes the most important question — what is to be 
done ? How can we accomplish this great work ? We can 
not without guilt adjourn the solution of the question to our 
successors. This generation is on our hands, and will pass 
off the stage with us, and must be saved by us, or not at all. 
How are we to reach these people and preach to them the 
gospel in its purity and power? 

I appreciate the fact that it is easier to tell what is the 
matter than tell how to cure it. Doubtless many wiser heads 
have labored over a solution of this question. But I can not 
help believing that the history of the case has suggested some 
remedies. In the first place, with reference to our immediate 



EEPORT ON HOME MISSIONS. 127 

surroundings, the mission work in our city and country, much 
can be done by multiplying our points of contact with the 
people; holding special services in their own homes, their 
school-houses and even their shops. The most successful 
pastors I know in this Synod have worked on this p'an, 
evangelizing their whole county, blessing the country and 
building up the city churches — each mutually helping the 
other by a reciprocal action. 

I need not cite instances, but the statistics of our churches 
will show the men who literally construe the great commission 
to preach the Gospel to every creature, whether he comes to 
your town church or not ; who go after him in obedience to 
the command, and find him, and preach to him, whether in 
the field, or shop, or forum. None of us I dare say will 
claim that eulogy: 'He hath done what he could." My 
conscience upbraids me for many lost opportunities and neg- 
lected duties in this matter. And how cold our zeal, how 
insignificant do our labors appear when compared with the life 
and work of such a man as Paul disputing daily, or of White- 
field, with his hemorrhages, preaching eighteen thousand 
sermons, and dying in the pulpit; of Moody with his four 
exercises daily for months and years ! 

But if we have not time and strength to cultivate our own 
proximate fields, then our seminaries furnish an admirable as- 
sistance in the young men during their summer vacations. 
Some thirty or forty students annually seek such labor, who, 
under your supervison, can double your working capacity 
during the best months of the year — from April to September 
— and by a happy reciprocity of grace, the labor that blesses 
others, returns in blessings 'to the young laborer, who needs 
this very training. There are pastors of flourishing churches 



128 THE SOUL WINNER. 

present who can testify from experience of the advantages of 
this plan. 

With reference to the great mission field, in the regions 
beyond us, where our church and its doctrines areas unknown 
as in China, but one available plan suggests itself to me; the 
employment by Synod or the Presbyteries of evangelists, men 
of zeal and qualifications suited to the work, who shall labor 
exclusively in that field, in organizing and building up 
churches. I know of no field this side of China, where time, 
labor and money can be more profitably expended in the 
Mister's cause; and, indeed, the promise is much better for 
an earlier and larger harvest, because here everything is in 
our favor, in land and language, history, tradition, religion 
and sympathy, while in the foreign field everything is 
against us. 

The men can be had. We only need the consecration 
of the abundant means in possession of the church, to sup- 
port them in the work I believe the people will give it, if 
properly instructed in their duty. Kentuckians, like other 
people, love to put their money where "it will do the most 
good." I defy the shrewdest financier to show me any stock 
that pays larger and surer dividends, God's measure is a 
hundred fold in this life, and in the world to come, life ever- 
lasting. Such gifts are twice blessed; they bless him who 
gives, and him who receives, for "he that watereth, shall 
himself also be watered," 

With profound regard for the judgment of this venerable 

Synod, these thoughts are respectfully submitted for their 

consideration, with the hope and prayer that they may at 

least serve the purpose of the author in directing your atten- 

ion to this important subject. I have not the time, nor is. 



REPORT ON HOME MISSIONS. 129 

this the occasion, I think, for discussing our duties and rela- 
tions to our colored population. Properly, that comes under 
the head of Foreign Missions, and will doubtless receive 
from the Synod the consideration its merits deserve, and the 
General Assembly's action indicates. 



BEGINNING OF THE WORK. 

The Synod of Kentucky, at Nicholasville, in October, 
1 88 1, determined to undertake this great work, with the 
hearty co-operation of all its Presbyteries. 

After the selection of a general committee on Evangelistic 
Work, the Synod elected Rev. W. Dennis Morton, Pastor of 
the Morganfield Church, and Rev. Edward O. Guerrant, 
Pastor of the First Presbyterian Church, Louisville, to be 
Evangelists of the Synod. The following reports give some 
account of my part of that work for three years and nine 
months. 



130 THE SOUL WINNER. 



EVANGELISTIC REPORT. 



j To the Synod of Kentucky, in session at Shelbyville, Ky., 
\ October 19, 1882. 



Fathers and Brethren : 

I herewith submit a report of my labors as your evan- 
gelist in that part of the State lying east of Louisville. 

I entered upon my work on Saturday, before the second 
Sabbath in January, at Richmond. Here I remained eleven 
days, holding two services a day, a prayer-meeting in the 
afternoon, and preaching at night. The very inclement wea- 
ther, the illness of Dr. Glass, the pastor of the church, and 
the examinations at the University, offered serious obstacles 
to the success of the meeting. But God blessed his truth to 
the hopeful conversion of seventeen souls, sixteen of whom 
united with the Presbyterian Church. 

On the twenty- third of January, I went to the assistance 
of Dr. Bartlett, at Lexington, where I remained until the 5th 
of February. During this time, some one hundred and 
twelve confessed Christ, most of whom united with Dr. Bart- 
lett's church. Here, as everywhere else I preached, the can- 
didates were allowed the choice of their church connection. 
Many united with the northern branch of the church, whose 
pastor (Mr. Wilson) and people co-operated heartily in the 
meeting. This was an extraordinary outpouring of the Spirit, 
for which the whole church and its faithful pastor had been 
laboring and praying. Rev. Messrs. H. C. DuBose and 



EVANGELISTIC REPORT. 131 

James J. Lucas, foreign missionaries, rendered valuable ser- 
vice also during the meeting. 

On the 14th of February, I went to help Mr. Chisolm, 
at Harrodsburg, and remained until the 26th. During this 
time, one hundred and nine came forward to accept Christ, 
most of whom joined Mr. Chisolm's church. Here, as at 
Lexington, there was both earnest prayer and work by pastor 
and people. The revival extended to other churches, and the 
whole community felt the presence and power of God's spirit, 
and great good was the result. 

On the 10th of March, I visited the " Bayless Memorial 
Church," at Grayson, vacant for some time, and much dis- 
couraged. I preached two days, and eleven persons were 
received into the church, and Rev. E. F. Hoke was called 
to be stated supply of the church. 

On the 1 6th of March, I went to Maysville to help Mr. 
Kennedy, and remained until the 30th. In spite of many 
obstacles and much discouragment, a few faithful women, and 
fewer men, held up the ministers hands, and implored God's 
help. God heard their cry, poured out his spirit, and forty- 
five persons were added to the church. During this meeting, 
Mr. Evans, the evangelist, rendered most faithful service, 
and did most of the preaching. 

On the 1 2th of April, I visited Dr. Bracken's church at 
Lebanon. It was ''good to be there." The pastor and peo- 
ple, men and women, were working and praying, and look- 
ing for God's blessing. It came with power, and in twelve 
days there were fifty- four who accepted Christ in Dr. Brack- 
en's church, and a number in other churches in town. This 
church added one hundred and thirty-one dollars to its former 
contribution to the evangelistic work in Kentucky, the most 



332 THE SOUL WINNER. 

liberal gift received from any church I visited, if we except 
the church at Lexington, which raised $300 after the meeting 
there, but devoted it to the general work of Sustentation. 
This meeting at Lebanon closed my labors among the organ- 
ized churches, and I now began my special work as evangel- 
ist in the disorganized churches and destitute fields. 

On the 7th of May, I visited the old abandoned church 
at Salvisa, and found one faithful old elder and a few women. 
There had not been a regular preacher or meeting of the ses- 
sion for years. But there were enough of God's people left 
to pray for his blessing. He heard and answered as he always 
does, and in ten days fifty-seven were added to the church ; 
four excellent young men elected, ordained and installed offi- 
cers in the church, and a faithful young student from Union 
Seminary, Va., (J. S. Lyons) engaged to supply the church 
alternately with Lawrenceburg. This congregation have a 
substantial and commodious brick clrurch in the midst of an 
intelligent community, and a fine country. They maintain a 
good Sabbath-school and a young men's prayer-meeting. In 
this meeting I had the valuable assistance of Mr. Jos. H. 
Hopper, the sweet singer and earnest worker, who has been 
with me, since then, in most of my work through the moun- 
tains and destitute fields. 

On the 27th of May, we went over a rough mountain 
road to Hazel Green, on Red River, in Wolfe County, forty^ 
one miles from Mt. Sterling. Here we found one Presby- 
terian family devoted to the Master's work. There had never 
been a church of our order in the county, and few of the peo- 
ple had ever seen or heard a Presbyterian preacher. Here 
we held a meeting in a school house for ten days, and fifty- 
eight persons accepted Christ, forty-six of whom were organ- 



EVANGELISTIC REPORT. 133 

ized into a Presbyterian Church, with the Col. Robt. J. Sam- 
uel and H. Clay Herndon, for elders, and John H. Adams 
and John C. M. Day, for deacons. A liberal gentleman, (J. 
G. Trimble, Esq.), gave a beautiful lot for a church, and 
$500 were subscribed to build a house of worship. They 
have been delayed in building, but hope to go forward in the 
spring. This church has been regularly supplied with preach- 
ing during the summer by self-denying brethren from a dis- 
tance. 

On the 25th of June, we visited Manchester, in Clay 
County, traveling a desperate road over Wild Cat Mountain 
in. the night. Here we found a few Presbyterians, and with 
God's blessing, could have organized a church, if the way 
had been clear. But our brethren of the Northern branch 
had previously visited the field, and expected to return. 
Therefore, we did not feel at liberty to proceed to the organi- 
zation of a church. We remained but three days, during 
which five persons confessed Christ, and were recommended 
to the brethren of other churches. 

On the 9th of July, we visited Estill County, and held a 
meeting at Irvine, the county seat, and at Sand Hill, an old 
log church four miles in the country. Some forty years ago, 
there had been a small Presbyterian organization at Sand 
Hill, but only three members were found in the country, all 
past seventy years of age. By the blessing of God, we or- 
ganized a church at Irvine, of thirty-seven members, with 
John H. Moore and James A. N. Lane, as elders, and Grant 
Lilly, as deacon. Nine others who accepted Christ were 
recommended to the Methodist and other churches of their 
choice. This church at Irvine is among a most excellent and 
cultivated people, in a pretty village, situated among the 



134 THE SOUL WINNER, 

foothills of the mountains. Dr. Glass, of Richmond, kindly 
took this church under his care for the present, and it has 
been regularly supplied with preaching up to this time. 

. On the 6th of August, I began a meeting at Comb's 
Ferry, on the Kentucky River, in Clark County. There be- 
ing no other house we could use, services were held in a va- 
cant grocery and bar room, where rude plank seats were ex- 
temporized by the generous proprietor, Mr. McCuddy. 
There was not a Presbyterian in the neighborhood, and few 
of the people regularly attended service anywhere, and not 
many belonged to any church. But God had a few faithful 
children, principally women, who knew how to pray, and did 
pray. God heard and answered, and poured out a great 
baptism of his Spirit on the whole community. In one week 
eighty-four persons (many whole families) professed Christ, 
eighty of whom were organized into a Presbyterian church, 
with John F. Bean and Hubbard L. Stevens, for elders, and 
F. T. Martin and Jos. Orear, for deacons. This church im- 
mediately set about building a house of worship, raised 
$r,ooo, and are now at work on the new church edifice. It 
was received and enrolled as Maple Grove (now Mt. Tabor) 
Church, under care of West Lexington Presbytery at its late 
regular meeting, and was represented by its elder, John F. 
Bean. Rev. E. E. Bigger, pastor of Salem Church, ren- 
dered valuable service during the meeting, and has had pas- 
toral care of this church since its organization, preaching 
there twice a month. A good Sabbath-school is maintained 
under charge of John F. Bean, the faithful elder who began 
the work which God owned and blessed so signally. 

On the 2d of July, in company with Rev. Paul F. Brown, 
of Virginia, I visited the church at Grayson, and moderated 



EVANGELISTIC REPORT. 135 

a congregational meeting, when he was called unanimously 
to take charge of the church as stated supply, which he did 
at once. On the 20th of August I began a meeting there 
preparatory to the dedication of the church on the 27th of 
August. There were twenty-five added to the church, which 
was dedicated free of debt, and greatly refreshed and encour- 
aged after a long and anxious struggle for life. During this 
meeting Rev. F. B. Converse, of Louisville, rendered most 
efficient service, as well as Messrs. Brown and Hopper. And 
I should be remiss in my duty if I failed to mention the zeal- 
ous, faithful and self-denying labors of the women of this 
little church. Their crowns are " laid up in heaven." 

On the 3d of September, in company with Rev. A. C. 
Munroe, of Mississippi, I visited the new church at Irvine 
and Sand Hill, in Estill county, and remained three days as- 
sisting Mr. Munroe. Seven were added to the church, and 
three new officers elected, ordained and installed : Dr. G. A. 
Embry, as elder, and H. Wm. Gardner and Jefferson Flynn 
as deacons. 

By invitation of Mr. and Mrs. F.'E. Long, oh the 7th 
of September, I visited New Hope, in Nelson county, a little 
village on the Lebanon branch of the Louisville & Nashville 
Railroad. Five-sixths of the population of the country are 
Catholics, and the few Protestants were divided among the 
various denominations— two Presbyterians only residing in 
the village. 

Here I preached five days and organized a Presbyterian 
church of twenty-five members of most excellent people, with 
Finis E. Long, Daniel K. Ashcraft arid Dr. Benj. C. Symp- 
son for elders, andWm. V. Hobbs for deacon. The services 
were held in Mr. Long's hotel, for want of a better place ; 



136 THE SOUL WINNER. 

but this zealous 'little band raised several hundred dollars, 
and are already at work on a neat house of worship, and 
hope to occupy it before winter. Dr. Bracken, of Lebanon, 
kindly took charge of this flock until they secured a regular 
pastor, which they expect to do by winter with the New 
Haven church, only six miles distant, in support of one 
minister. 

On the 22d of September we visited the old Union 
church in Clark county. For sevea years it had no pastor, 
but one elder and a few members. The Lord heard the cry 
of his people and poured out His spirit, and twelve valuable 
members were added to the church, supplying the very ma- 
terial needed for officers. P. L. Skinner was elected, or- 
dained and installed a ruling elder ; Charles Swift and Eli B. 
Dooley to be deacons. The congregation called Rev. Dr. 
Daniel B. Ewing, of Winchester, to supply the church two 
Sabbaths in the moMth, which he consented to do. 

On the ist of October I began a meeting at Olive Hill, a 
little village in Carter county, on the Chesapeake & Ohio 
Railroad, fifteen miles from Grayson. Two faithful Presby- 
terian women there had prayed and hoped for a church. 
There was no church building, but some feeble organization 
of other churches. Here I remained nine days, preaching 
in a little school house. God heard the prayers of His chil- 
dren, and blessed the preaching of His word. Fifty- three 
were added to the Presbyterian church, which was organized 
by the election, ordination and installation of C. C. Brooks 
and Alex. McKnightas elders, and M. F. Duncan and James 
A. Painter as deacons. Rev. Paul F. Brown, pastor of Gray- 
son church will take charge of this church also. A liberal 
gentleman gave the church a nice and convenient lot in the 



EVANGELISTIC REPORT. 137 

new town on the railroad for a church building, and they 
have gone to work to raise money to build at once. Though 
deprived of many advantages of more favored sections and 
possessed of but little of this world's goods, these, like most 
of our mountain people, are a virtuous and intelligent and 
orderly people. They deserve and should receive our liberal 
support. Two young gentlemen members of the church 
have offered themselves as candidates for the gospel ministry, 
and after satisfactory examination have been taken under 
care of Ebenezer Presbytery. Another young gentleman, a 
member of Hazel Green church, is also prosecuting his 
studies with the same purpose in view. 

I have now given, in as few words as possible, the prin- 
cipal facts of my labors as your evangelist since the beginning 
of the year. There are many other things, both interesting 
and instructive, which might be mentioned, but for want of 
time. It has been to me a "labor of love" and rich ex- 
perience of God's grace. Though the labor has sometimes 
been severe, and the privations sometimes great, the Lord 
has "renewed my strength," and for the first time in years, 
enabled me to preach through the whole summer. 

I have preached some two hundred and sixty-three times 
and received seven hundred and thirty-one persons into the 
church, most of whom I baptized ; organized five new 
churches, and reorganized two old ones (one in Louisville 
Presbytery, two in Transylvania, three in West Lexington 
and one in Ebenezer). Two of these are now engaged in 
building houses of worship, and two others are making pre- 
parations to build. Five young men are preparing for the 
gospel ministry in our new churches, and many others have 
their hearts turned toward it. 



138 THE SOHL WINNER. 

Three hundred and fifty dollars have been contributed to 
the Synod's evangelistic work (beside their regular contri- 
butions) by the various churches and persons I have visited. 
Three hundred dollars alone was given to the sustentation 
cause by one church ; and I have collected $280 to assist in 
the building of new houses of worship in the mountains. 

My experience has clearly established the following 
facts, which some have been led to doubt: 1st. That it is 
not necessary for men to go outside of the church to preach 
the Gospel with success. 2d. That the Gospel as held and 
taught by the Presbyterian church is adapted to the masses. 
3d. That God has opened a wide and effectual door to our 
church among the poor, neglected people of our mountains. 
4th. That the Gospel is still the power of God unto salvation, 
and needs only to be plainly and prayerfully preached to ac- 
complish His blessed will, in the conversion of men. 

It may be proper for me to state, that I have been guided 
in the selection of my fields of labor by the comparative needs 
of the various places. No man, in the limitations of the 
flesh, could accomplish a tithe of the work to be done in such 
a field in one year. There were originally over eighty 
counties assigned to me, and after the appointment of Rev. 
J. M. Evans there were still left some sixty, embracing nearly 
all the mountainous part of the State. I have done all my 
time and strength would allow me to do. I make this ex- 
planation that my brethren may understand why I have 
been compelled to decline so many pressing invitations to 
visit their churches. 

In my labor as your evangelist I have not aimed merely 
to add members to the church. By remaining at many places 
the number could have been doubled. But I have endeavored 



EVANGELISTIC REPORT. 139 

to reach and build up as many churches as possible, to supply 
the vacant pulpits, to set in order the things that were want- 
ing, to strengthen those that remained, to organize new 
churches and to reorganize old ones, and so to multiply the 
points and agencies of Christian work and influence. In 
much of this work I have received the cheerful co-operation 
of brethren of all churches, and the faithful and efficient help 
of Mr. Jos..H. Hopper, who has been with me in the moun- 
tains, where we had no person to lead the singing. His 
services have been invaluable. May God reward him lib- 
erally, and all who helped in the Master's work. 

Though the work has been surrounded by many diffi- 
culties, with the indifference of the worldly, the neutrality or 
opposition of some ignorant church people and the active 
hostility of the Great Adversary, I have endeavored to keep 
a "conscience void of offense toward all men," and honor 
the church that sent me, and the Lord that bought me. To 
you, as representative of that church, I tender this profound 
acknowledgment for the honor and the privilege, and to Him 
I will ascribe all the power and the glory forever. Amen. 

Your humble and obedient servant, for Jesus' sake. 

Edward O. Guerrant. 



140 THE SOUL WINNER. 



REPORT TO SYNOD ON EVANGELISTIC WORK— 
HARRODSBURG, OCTOBER, 1883— Centennial Year. 

To the Venerable Synod of Kentucky : 
Eathers and Brethren : — 

I have the honor to submit the following report of my 
labors as your evangelist since the last meeting of the Synod. 

On the 22d of October, 1882, I visited the old church at 
Walnut Hill, in Fayette county, to assist Rev. E. E. Bigger. 
I remained there over the following Sabbath. The congre- 
gations were large and attentive, and twenty-two were added 
to the church, about doubling its membership. For though 
this church is about one hundred years old, it has never been 
a large church, or had much material upon which to build. 

The country is not thickly settled, and other churches 
divide the membership. But it makes up in quality what it 
lacks in quantity ; and though few in number, it has probably 
the neatest country church in the Synod, and a faithful pastor 
settled in its manse. 

On the nth of November I went to visit our new church 
at Hizel Green in Wolfe county, and if possible imke ar- 
rangements for a preacher for that destitute field. I found 
the little church faithfully carrying on its prayer-meetings 
and Sabbath schools, of which it had two — one for the whites 
and another for the blacks. Two new members were added 
to the church, and two hundred dollars were subscribed to- 
ward the salary of an evangelist. 

On the 1 8th of November I began a meeting at Point 
Burnside, on the Cumberland River. Here I preached five 
days in the school house. God blessed His word, and I or- 



EVANGELISTIC REPORT. 141 

ganized a church of thirty-four members, with six good 
officers — Capt. Wm. C. Crozer, Dr. L. B. Cook, Wra. T. 
Brown, and John C. Bowman for elders and Albert J. Taylor 
and Samuel Smith for deacons. This is the first organization 
here at an important point on the Cincinnati Southern Rail 
road, at the junction of the Cumberland Rivers. 

On the 25th I visited King's Mountain, a village of some 
fifty families, at the terminus of the big tunnel on the Cin- 
cinnati Southern Railroad, in Pulaski county. Here I re- 
mained four days, preaching in a small and dilapidated school 
house. Twenty-seven persons joined the church and were 
duly organized, with Alpheus C. Sine, Andrew M. Pears and 
M. D. Robinson as elders ; all most excellent men, with 
Presbyterian training. This is the first church organization 
at this point, and steps were immediately taken to build a 
house of worship. 

On the 29th of November I visited McKinney, in Lin- 
coln county, again using the school house for our services. 
Here I remained six days. God overruled all obstacles to 
His glory, and enabled us to organize a church of twenty- 
three members, with James Bibb, Sr., and Richard Bibb, 
two devoted Presbyterians, for elders. Steps were immedi- 
ately taken to build a neat house of worship, which is now in 
process of erection. 

In these meetings I had the valuable services of brother 
J H. Hopper, a son of Asaph, whose songs and prayers were 
greatly blessed of God. These three- churches were organ- 
ized in the evangelistic field of brother John E. Triplett, of 
McKinney, who accompanied me and assisted in the work, 
with a zeal and energy which is characteristic of him. 

On December 10th I visited the old Gilead church, on 



142 THE SOUL WINNER. 

the Licking River, in Bath county, which had been vacant 
since the removal of the beloved and lamented brother Barbee 
Betts. It has been greatly discouraged and demoralized. 
Though the weather was exceedingly inclement, a good con- 
gregation assembled, and after the sermon subscribed up- 
wards of two hundred dollars to secure preaching. 

On the 1 6th erf December I visited our vacant church at 
Owingsville, the county seat of Bath county, and secured up- 
wards of two hundred dollars in subscriptions for a preacher 
there. This is a feeble flock, but most excellent people and 
zealous workers. Being long without a preacher or a church 
building they have carried on a good Sabbath school in the 
Court House, and maintained their organization. I am 
happy to say, that aided by your liberality, they are now 
supplied with a good preacher, and hope to have a commo- 
dious house of worship soon, having several hundred doliars 
subscribed for the purpose. It is the center of a fine country 
and among intelligent people. 

On the 30th of December I visited the little cburch at 
New Hope, in Nelson county, organized in August, and on 
Sabbath, December 31st, dedicated the new and beautiful 
house of worship built since that time. God honored their 
devotion by adding nine new members to the faithful little 
band. Upwards of two hundred dollars were subscribed to- 
wards paying off the debt on the church. No congregation 
in my knowledge have worked more faithfully or carried a 
heavier cross than this heroic little band at New Hope. 
Thanks to many generous friends abroad and to the Synod's 
committee they enjoy regular preaching of the Gospel, and 
have paid a large part of their debt. 

On January 6th I went to Versailles to assist Rev. Dr. 



EVANGELISTIC REPORT. 143 

Rout in a meeting. Here I remained until the 1 8th. The 
weather was very inclement and the roads covered with ice. 
Notwithstanding this, the congregations were fine, and the 
interest increased to the end. Eighteen were added to the 
church as the immediate result of the services. During this 
meeting we had the valuable assistance of Rev. Dr. Ruther- 
ford, as well as the faithful and efficient pastor of the church. 
The most fastidious could find no fault with this model 
church, unless it be in the song service. While not de- 
ficient in its quality, it lacks in quantity. "Let all the peo- 
ple praise Thee, O God." 

On January 20th I went to Pulaski Station, in Pulaski 
county, and on Sabbath 21st dedicated their new church, and 
celebrated their first communion, and raised forty-five dollars 
to pay off a small debt on the building. The weather was 
very severe, and the facilities for comfort not such as to 
justify a protracted service. After preaching three times on 
Sunday I returned home on Monday, and was not able to 
leave there until the 30th, when I started to Paducah to as- 
sist Rev. Dr. Hendrick. Here I remained two weeks. The 
weather could hardly have been worse ; pouring rains 
drenched the land and froze as it fell, enveloping the city in 
ice. Notwithstanding this, the congregations were good, 
often very large, and God honored the long service of His 
faithful servant, who has been sowing seed by these great 
waters for twenty five years. Some forty were added to Dr. 
Hendrick's church, besides a number who were dismissed to 
unite with other churches. It was a fitting close of a long 
and faithful ministry among people devoted to their pastor 
and their Lord. 

On February 18th I visited the Gilead and Ovvingsville 



144 THE SOUL WINNER. 

churches in Bath county, in company with Rev. J. L. Barnes, 
and moderated both congregations, when they called him to 
preach for them regularly on alternate Sabbaths, promising 
him four hundred and fifty dollars towards his support. 

On February 20th I preached at Springfield, Bath 
county, and on the 25th at Salem, in Clark county, and on 
the 29th, by advice of physicians, I started South to recuper- 
ate my health. 

On the 13th of March I returned to Kentucky, and on 
the 18th went to Carlisle to assist Rev. Dr. Scudder, and re- 
mained until the 28th. The weather was wintry, but the 
people turned out and filled the beautiful new church, and 
God blessed His word, and twenty-eight souls were added to 
His church, most of them young people. The church was 
greatly revived, and the whole community seemed to be im- 
pressed with the Gospel, more than for years, it was said It 
was no wonder God blessed this people ; they prayed and 
worked for His blessing. Such are always heard and an- 
swered, for "Every one that asketh receiveth !" 

On April 1st I preached at Mt. Sterling, and on the 3d 
went to Clintonville, in Bourbon county, to assist Rev. S. D. 
Boggs. Here I remained nine days. The congregations 
were small at first, but gradually increased until the house 
was crowded. A few fathful members, principally women 
(as usual), have carried this little church on their hearts for 
years, amidst many discouragements. God heard their cry 
and poured out His Spirit, and there were twenty-five added 
to the Presbyterian Church, and three united with a sister 
church. 

On April 19th I went to Washington, Mason county, to 
assist Brother E. E. Ervin, and remained until the 29th. 



EVANGELISTIC REPORT. 145 

The congregations were large from the beginning, and the 
people in earnest. In cpite of divisions growing out of the 
sad past the faithful little church worked and prayed for a 
blessing, and received it. Sixteen new members were added 
to its roll and seven infants baptized. I do not know a 
church of its size which surpasses this in working and pray- 
ing, and paying .Though small, it supports a^pastor all of his 
time, and enjoys the preaching of G)d's word every Sabbath. 
During this meeting we had the valuable assistance of Rev. 
S. H. Chester, of Maysville. 

On the 6th of May I preached at Owingsvilleand Spring- 
field churches, in Bath county, and on the 9th went to Car- 
rollton to assist Rev. Benj. Helm. Here, as at so many other 
places, I found a faithful pastor with a few godly women and 
fewer men struggling bravely to carry on their little church 
under many difficulties and discouragements. I could re- 
main but seven days, on account of my voice, severely tried 
by continually speaking. There were thirteen new members 
added to the church, and one dismissed to unite with a sister 
church. One promising young member of this church ex- 
pressed a desire to study for the ministry, and is engaged in 
preparation for that work. 

Sickness in my family detained me at home until the 
26th inst., when I went to visit the church at Munfordsville, 
in Hart county. This little church of some twenty members 
and one elder had been vacant for a number of years, and 
being so small and poor had about dispaired of ever securing 
any preaching, on account of its isolated position, though the 
capital of 11 large and populous county. I preached there on 
the Sabbath, and two young ladies made profession of faith ; 
one joined our church and one the Reform church. 



146 THE SOUL WINNER. 

Brother Wm. G. McDonald, a student of Union Theo 
logical Seminary, accompmied me, and accepted the invita- 
tion to preach for them during the summer, for which they 
promised to board him and pay him fifty dollars. This service 
was faithfully rendered. 

On the 3d of June I went to Kirksville, in Madison 
county, and preached three days for Rev. Wm. Crow. The 
weather was rainy and the nights dark, but the working little 
church overcame the difficulties, turned out and filled the 
house. Four new members were added to the church on 
profession of faith. 

On the 8th of June I went to visit our new church at 
Irvine, in Estill county. Rev. \V. W. Brimm, who had sup- 
plied the church since last fall, had resigned and was about to 
leave. I preached in Irvine and at Sand Hill, in the coun- 
try, until Tuesday 12th, and received six new members into 
the church on profession. 

The church organized at Comb's Ferry in August, 1882, 
having built a beautiful house of worship on a commanding 
eminence overlooking the Kentucky River, had it formally 
dedicated on the 17th of June. With the consent of the 
church, I invited the venerable Bishop Kavanaugh, of the 
M. E. Church, South, to preach the sermon. He was born 
and raised in this neighborhood, where a brother and sister 
and many of his relative still live. A number of them are 
members of this church, and two of his nephews among its 
officers. 

The Bishop preached the morning sermon to a great con- 
gregation of people, after which the multitude was fed at a 
bounteous table spread in the grove by the hopitable mem- 
bers and their friends, It was a day of great rejoicing. 



EVANGELISTIC REPORT. 147 

The meeting continued until Friday ; during which time 
I had the efficient help of the three Kavanaugh brothers, 
Rev. Dr. Ewing and Rev. E. E. Bigger. Twenty-three new 
members were added to the church, which has now over one 
hundred members. Two excellent men were elected and or- 
dained officers in the church — Joseph Jones to be elder and 
Hubbard Taylor to be a deacon — making six efficient officers. 
The congregation voted to call their church "Mount Tabor," 
and it is so enrolled in West Lexington Presbytery. The 
church unanimously called Rev. Dr. Ewing to supply their 
pulpit, and raised seven hundred and twenty dollars in money 
and by subscription to pay his salary and other expenses of 
the church. Dr. Ewing entered immediately upon his work, 
and has preached for them regularly since that time, as well 
as to the Union church. 

On the 30th of June I went to Winchester to assist Rev. 
Dr. Van Lear, and remained until the 6th of July. The 
weather was the hottest of the year, but the congregations 
were unusually good considering the oppressive heat. Part 
of the time I was not able to speak, but Dr. Ewing and Dr. 
Van Lear ably preached the word. There were nine added 
to the church on profession — all valuable members. The 
church placed eighty-eight dollars in my hands to be used at 
my discretion in my work in the mountains. Fifty dollars of 
this amount was sent to the little church at Olive Hill to help 
them build a house of worship. The balance I hold subject 
to similar calls, with five dollars given by a lady member of 
the same church. 

On the 14th of July I again visited the little church at 
Munfordsville, and remained five days. Rev. R. Brent, of 
the Northern Church, was present and assisted me in the 



148 THE SOUL WINNER. 

services, together with Brother Wm. G. McDonald. Hereto- 
fore this church has held its connection with the Church 
Xorth, and it has been without a preacher for five years. 

At a congregational meeting moderated by Brother 
Brent the church voted unanimously to change its ecclesias- 
tical connection and unite with the Southern Church, as their 
only hope of obtaining a preacher, or perpetrating their or- 
ganization. 

The congregation then elected Robert Armstrong (their 
former elder), Dr. Wm. B. Brown and Charles A. Epes to 
be elders, who were duly ordained and installed. Rev. 
Charles Robinson, of Glasgow, and Dr. Adair, of a sister 
church, were present and assisted. 

On Wednesday and Thursday God poured out His 
Spirit on the town, and mightily revived His church. On 
Thursday night the meeting closed with a pentecostal season ; 
fifteen persons, old and young, some in tender years and 
others hardened in sin, crowded the front pews seeking the 
salvation of their souls. It was a season long to be remem- 
bered. The membership of the little church was about 
doubled, and its zeal, and faith, and hope multiplied many 
fold. 

Brother McDonald served them faithfully during the 
summer, and since his return to the seminary they have 
united with the church at Cave City in calling Rev. J. W. 
Davis, of South Carolina. 

On the 20th of July, accompanied by Rev. R. Brent, I 
started to Irvine and Sand Hill, in Estill county, where we 
preached on Sabbath and Monday, and received four new 
members into the church. 

Brother Brent having preached acceptably to the church, 



EVANGELISTIC REPORT. 149 

and being pleased to remain, accepted a call to labor among 
them, and entered at once upon his work, which he has pros- 
ecuted with energy to this time. 

On Saturday, 28th of July, I went to King's Mountain, 
and preached that night, and the next morning dedicated the 
new church in the presence of a large congragation. This 
little church of twenty-seven members, organized last No- 
vember, and their energetic pastor, Rev. J. E. Triplett, de- 
serve great credit for their enterprise and zeal. Though not 
a year old, few in number, and poor in this world's goods, 
they have built and dedicated, free of debt, a beautiful new 
house, the only church in the village. During the three 
days' service the Lord added twelve valuable members to the 
church ; seven infants were baptized and seventy dollars 
raised to pay off some little debts of the congregation. 

Two young gentlemen, members of this church, offered 
themselves as candidates for the Gospel ministry and were 
received under the care of Transylvania Presbytery at its 
last meeting. 

On Wednesday, August 1st, we went to Pulaski Station 
and remained three days. During the time we had good 
congregations for week days in the country, and received 
God's blessing on His word. Eleven members were received 
into the little church on profession of faith, all young men 
and women. 

On Saturday evening we went to Point Burnside and 
spent the Sabbath and Monday with our new church there. 
Was happy to find them prospering, having regular preach- 
ing by Brother Triplett, and a good Sunday school, and they 
have a comfortable house of worship. All these churches are 
among the Cumberland mountains. In all these services in 



150 THE SOUL WINNER. 

Brother Triplett's field I had his efficient help, and also of 
Mr. J. C. Clark, of Jeffersonville, who assisted in the sing- 
ing and pastoral work with earnestness and zeal. 

On Saturday, August nth, accompanied by Rev. Eu- 
gene P. Mickel, of Athens Presbytery, Georgia, I went t© 
visit the new church at Hazel Green, in Wolfe county. We 
preached there on Saturday night and Sabbath morning, and 
received three new members into the church. At a congre- 
gational meeting the church extended a unanimous call to 
Brother Mickel to supply their pulpit, while he does evange- 
listic work throughout the county, and subscribed one hun- 
dred and fifty dollars toward his salarv. This call he ac- 
cepted, and is now in the field with his family doing faithful 
and efficient work, with acceptance to the people. It is a 
wide field of usefulness. There is no Presbyterian church or 
preacher within forty miles. Four young men of this church 
have their hearts turned toward the Gospel ministry and are 
engaged in studies with that in view. One of them, John 
VV. McClain, was received under the care of the West Lex- 
ington Presbytery at its last meeting. This congregation is 
now engaged in building a house of worship, and have given 
most liberally of their little means and have been generously 
helped by some of their abler brethren, but will need more 
help. Like others of our mountain churches, they are rich 
in grace, but are poor in this world's goods. 

As the result of this long trip into the mountains, I was 
not able to leave home until the 2 2d of the month (August), 
when I went to Beard's church, in Scott county, to assist 
Rev. Charles T. Thomson. Here I remained one week, 
preaching to very large and interesting congregations. God 
poured out His Spirit, healed the old divisions, renewed the 



EVANGELISTIC REPORT. 151 

graces of His people and added thirty five new members to 
the church on profession of faith ; thirty-one of whom I bap- 
tized. A collection was taken up for our evangelistic cause, 
and thirty-three dollars and eighty seven cents was raised, in 
addition to a former collection. 

Mr. Alpheus Cruzan, a member of this church, and a son 
of one of the elders, determined to devote himself to the 
Gospel ministry, and was received as a candidate under the 
care of West Lexington Presbytery at its last meeting, and 
is now prosecuting his studies at Central University. 

In this meeting I had the help of Mr. Addison McElroy, 
a devoted young Christian from Louisville (son of Rev. Wm. 
T. McElroy), who rendered valuable aid in the singing. In 
all the work Brother Thomson, the pastor, rendered the 
grestest service. He seems to be the right man in the right 
place. The church speaks of building a large house of wor- 
ship to meet the demands of the growing congregations. 

On Sabbath, September 3d, I preached at Springfield 
church, Bath county, on the occasion of the funeral of ene of 
its oldest members. 

Rev. P. F. Brown, of Carter county, having return- 
ed to West Virginia on account of his wife's health, 
September 6th I visited the church at Olive Hill, in 
Eastern Kentucky, and preached that night and the next 
morning. Though left without a shepherd, I found the little 
church hopeful, keeping up its organization and Sunday 
School, and engaged in building a house of worship, the only 
one in the viilage, and succeeded in increasing their subscrip- 
tion thirty-one dollars for building. That is not much at 
Lexington, but it is a good deal at Olive Hill. The widow's 
mite was "more than they all." 



152 THE SOUL WINNER. 

On Friday evening, September 7th, I went on to Den- 
ton, in Carter county, on the waters of the Little Sandy 
River, and preached in the school house to a crowd of adult 
working people, principally from the coal mines. Here I 
preached Friday, Saturday and Sunday to large and deeply 
interested congregations, with eleven additions to the church. 
Being a most destitute field, without a church, and earnestly 
desiring an organization, I proceeded to organize a Presby- 
terian church there, with Charles H. Stuart, Esq., as elder. 

Here is a wide field for a great work among a multitude 
of people who need and want regular preaching of the Gos- 
pel. A faithful servant can reap a rich reward there, who is 
willing to take souls for his hire. 

On September 14th I went to Lairs, on the Kentucky 
Central Railroad, in Harrison county. This is the center of 
a considerable population. In the neighborhood are several 
large distilleries. There never was a church here. I re- 
mained a week, preaching in an old depot, which was 
crowded with an intelligent and orderly congregation. They 
heard the word gladly, and eighteen were added to the 
church, which was organized by the election and ordination 
of George R. Sharp and Artemus Tate as elders, two of the 
best men in the community. Some three hundred dollars 
had already been subscribed to build a house of worship. 
Rev. J. S. Vanmeter, of Cynthiana, and Rev. C. F. Thom- 
son, of Mount Pleasant church, were present during the 
meeting and rendered valuable service. They had visited 
the field before and preached the word faithfully, which God 
blessed. A few devoted women had organized a Sunday 
School, and taught it in the depot. 

"Verily they shall not lose their reward." 



EVANGELISTIC REPORT. 153 

On the 23d I preached at Mt. Sterling, and on the 25th 
went to Springdale, in Jefferson county, where I preached 
over the Sabbath, September 30th. This little church of 
eight members, organized last spring by the Louisville Pres- 
bytery, I found in very feeble condition, The attendance 
was small, and the people generally indifferent to the Gospel. 
But there were a faithful few, very few, but enough to claim 
the promise made to "two or three." God heard and 
answered, as He said He would, and poured out a rich bless- 
ing on those who asked. On the last night of the meeting 
nineteen came forward to accept Christ, most of them young 
men and women. It was Pentecost at Springdale. 

Twenty-four were added to the little church, quadrup- 
ling its members and faith in God. One took his member- 
ship to another branch of the church. During most of the 
service we had the assistance of Rev. W. L. Bedinger, and 
of his father, Rev. E. W. Bedinger, who has been tempora- 
rily supplying this little flock which he first gathered, and 
who, at much inconvenience, left his duties at Anchorage to 
attend the services at night. 

About the first of May three young men — DeVault, Dog- 
gett and Richardson — from the Union Theological Seminary, 
Virginia, were engaged to canvass several counties in East- 
ern Kentucky for the Bible Society, and at the same time 
preach the Gospel as they had opportunity. In this way hun- 
dreds of families were supplied with Bibles, and the Gospel 
preached in many vacant churches and destitute fields. Dur- 
ing the summer these young gentlemen canvassed and 
preached in Bath, Montgomery, Menefee, and Magoffin 
counties. They did their work faithfully and well. 

I have now given an outline of my labors as your evan. 



154 THE SOUL WINNER. 

gelist since the last Synod. While this report might have 
been indifinitely extended with interesting details of the work, 
I have simply endeavored to state briefly such facts as you 
had a right to know, without trespassing on your time and 
patience. 

During the past year I have visited and preached to some 
thirty-two of our churches in the Synod of Kentucky. I 
have traveled over much of the State, from Paducah to the 
Sandy River, from the Ohio to the Cumberland. 

I have preached some two hundred and seventy times, 
and there were four hundred and fifty-nine persons received 
into the Presbyterian church, as one of the immediate and 
visible results of these labors ; most of these I baptized, be- 
sides a number of infants. In addition to these, a number 
who made confession during our meetings, cast their mem- 
bership with other branches of the church, as they always 
had permission to do. 

I have organized five new churches where none existed 
before, and reorganized the church at Munfordsville, which 
changed its ecclesiastical relation. Over these churches I or- 
dained seventeen good men to be rulers. 

Out of the churches visited, eight young men have offered 
themselves as candidates for the Gospel ministry in our 
church, and are now prosecuting their studies either at Cen- 
tral University or at private schools. Many others are seri- 
ously considering the subject. 

I am happy to report all our new churches regularly 
supplied with preaching of the Gospel, except the little group 
in Carter county, until recently, supplied by Rev. Paul F. 
Brown, who was induced to return to Virginia on account of 
his wife's health. 



EVANGELISTIC REPORT. 155 

I have dedicated four new churches, and three others 
are in process of erection. 

All of these are new organizations, where none of our 
order ever existed before. Two others are making prepara- 
tions to build. 

From the churches visited, I have secured the sum of 
two thousand and forty-four dollars in money and subscrip- 
tions, which was devoted either to securing preachers for va- 
cant churches or paying debts on new houses of worship or 
for the Synod's Evangelistic cause. 

This report I submit with profound gratitude to God for 
the blessings He has always bestowed upon my humble 
labors; and with profound humility from my sense of un- 
worthiness of such honor. 

I can truly say, the longer 1 know Him the more I be- 
lieve in Him and the less in myself. 

To His name be all the glory. 

I need not remind you, my brethren, that this service has 
not been performed without many discouragements and great 
exposure. Most ©f it, from its nature, had to be done among 
the mountains and destitute fields, or in feeble and discour- 
aged churches. 

During the last winter I suffered very much from the 
severe weather, and once was compelled to leave the State 
on account of my health. For this reason I shall ask you (if 
you desire my services as your evangelist any longer) to re- 
lieve me from duty during part of the coming winter, that I 
may seek refuge in the South during the worst of our weather. 

For only a small part of the time have I had the assist- 
ance of any one to labor with me, which I greatly needed in 
many places, especially in the song service. My experience 



156 THE SOUL WINNER. 

has confirmed the wisdom of the Divine plan of going forth 
" two and two," even though one may have to do all the 
preaching. I am confident that in many places, particularly 
in destitute fields, the visible results would have been much 
greater if I had had the service of some faithful and efficient 
co-worker, especially one who could sing well. 

The multitude of places needing help, compelled my stay 
to be short In many fields where a longer visit would have 
greatly added to the numbers and efficiency of the church, 
but I consider it more important to multiply centers of Gospel 
influence than mere numbers in the church. 

Much of my time has been employed in visiting the new 
churches, confirming them in the faith and supplying them 
with regular preaching of the Gospel. It would be worse than 
folly to organize churches to let them perish for want of at- 
tention. We can not afford to relinquish territory captured 
at such labor and expense. I congratulate you, brethren and 
fathers, upon the illustrious past of our church. I congratu- 
late you more upon its brightening prospects for a more illus- 
trious future. The Centennial of our church in Kentucky 
finds it in better condition than ever before, its conquests 
wider and its forces stronger and its resources greater. 

With vigorous prosecution of its work and the blessing 
of God upon its labors, no man can fortell what another Cen- 
tennial will disclose. It is no stretch of fancy to believe that 
every county in the State will have a church of our own faith 
and order; yes, every town and community; that "the 
wilderness and the solitary places" where no Presbyterian 
preacher has ever proclaimed the Gospel, " shall be glad for 
them, and the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose;" 
that this Synod shall enroll the names of 500 delegates instead 



EVANGELISTIC KEPOKT. 157 

of ioo, and the membership of the church be 100,000 instead 
of 15,000 ! We owe it to God, to ourselves, to our children 
and 10 the perishing thousands in our State, to use our utmost 
energies and to accomplish these glorious results. We shall 
not live to see it, but we shall celebrate it in that Eternal 
Centennial where he that soweth and he that reapeth rejoice 
together in the sunlight of God's approving, " well done." 

Edward O. Guerrant. 
Mount Sterling, Ky., Oct. 5, 1883. 



158 THE SOUL WINNER. 



REPORT OF EVANGELISTIC LABOR. 

To the Synod of Kentucky in sessio 1 at Hopkinsville, Oct., 1-884. 
Fathers and Brethren : 

I have the honor to submit the following report of my 
labors as your evangelist for the past year : 

On Saturday, October 13, 1883, I went from the Synod 
at Harrodsburg to Lawrenceburg, in Anderson county, 
where I preached on Sabbath morning for Rev. J. S. Lyons, 
pastor of the church ; and at Sal visa, in Mercer county, that 
night, when two ladies joined the church by profession, and 
were baptized. Very large congregations assembled at both 
places and both churches were prospering under their faith- 
ful young pastor. 

On Wednesday, October 17, I visited the little, deserted 
church at Florence, in Boone county. I found only about 
twelve members of the church left, five or six of whom were 
present during the meeting. Rev. Messrs. W. B. Cooper 
and William L. Bedinger were present, and lent valuable 
assistance. We remained over the Sabbath. The congrega- 
tion increased from two dozen to a house full. God 
graciously visited His people, and they were greatly revived. 
Three persons w r ere added to the church on profession of 
faith, and twenty-four dollars collected for the evange- 
listic work. They are few, but faithful, and greatly desire 
and deserve regular preaching. 

On Monday, the 22nd, I was compelled to leave in 
order to attend the meeting of the Synod's Evangelistic Com- 
mittee at Louisville. 

On Friday, the 26th, I went with Rev. Drs. Blanton and 



EVANGELISTIC REPORT. 159 

Witherspoon, as a committee, to Frankfort t© assist in raising 
funds to build a house of worship for our people there. The 
effort was successful and the church has been built and dedi- 
cated. 

On October 28, I preached at Owingsville, in Bath 
county, for Rev. J. L. Barnes, our evangelist in that county. 

On October 31st, I went to southern Georgia, where I 
remained a month on account of my health. While there I 
preached at Fort Gaines, Camilla and Leesburg, and some 
forty persons made profession of religion and united with 
the various churches. 

On November 27th, I returned to Kentucky, and on 
December 2nd I visited Grayson, in Carter county, and 
preached for our vacant church there. I moderated a meet- 
ing of the congregation which called Rev. Mr. McLean as 
pastor ; and raised two hundred dollars salary for part of his 
time. Two adults united with the church and were baptized. 
Twelve dollars were given to the Synod's evangelistic work. 

On December 3rd, I visited the new church at Olive 
Hill, and preached at night, when six persons were received 
into the church, and the congregation united with Grayson 
church in the call for Mr. McLean. 

On December 9th, I began a meeting at Covington for 
Rev. J. T. Plunket, and remained until the 17th. Very 
unfavorable weather operated against the success of the 
meeting, as winter set in with deep snows. There were 
thirty-two added to Rev. Mr. Plunket's church - almost all 
on profession. Ten of these were received the week pre- 
ceding, when Dr. H. M. Scudder had assisted the pastor. 
This is one of the handsomest and most convenient churches 
in Kentucky, and has one of the most efficient pastors, and 



160 TFTE SOUL WTXXEE. 

most liberal congregations. It has made great advances in 
a few years. God has given this church a wide door and a 
populous field, full of "spirits that go not out but by- 
prayer and fasting." The good women placed in my hands 
thirty odd dollars for one of our poor mountain churches, and 
a liberal son of a sainted preacher sent two handsome stoves 
to the same church. 

On December 23, I preached at Mt. Sterling, when the 
church called Rev. Dr. Scudder to be pastor. 

, On December 30, I preached at Springfield church. Bath 
county, when the congregation united in the call to Dr. 
Scudder for half his time, the two churches promising him 
Si, 400. 

During the month of January (1884), I remained at my 
home on account of sickness in my family. The weather, 
the coldest I ever experienced in Kentucky, also forbade my 
leaving. During the month I preached several times for the 
church — yet without a pastor, and seventeen were added to 

the church, mostly on profession. 

During this month our church succeeded in extricating 

itself from an unpleasant and unprofitable partnership with a 
sister church by selling one-half interest in the church prop- 
erty for $1,500. Determined to build, we proceeded to raise 
a subscription, and though our church is neither large nor 
rich, we secured during the month some four thousand 
dollars in subscriptions. By the liberal aid of brethren at a 
distance, we are now about completing a handsome and com- 
fortable church, such as we have long needed. 

On February 4th I preached at Olive Hill, and one lady 

united with the church and was baptized. Here I met Rev. 
L. E. Scott, of Virginia, who had come to take charge of the 
Evangelistic work in Carter county. 



EVANGELISTIC REPORT. 161 

On February 6th, I returned to Southwest Georgia, where 
I remained until April ist, visiting several vacant churches, 
as evangelist of Macon Presbytery. During the two months, 
some eighty-three persons were added to the various churches, 
and many disheartened ones encouraged to hope for better 
things. At Camilla I dedicated a handsome new church, 
built by the self-denying labors of a handful of our people. 

I found some few faithful and devoted Presbyterians 
scattered widely over Southern Georgia, suffering greatly for 
want of preaching and pastoral work. And nowhere have I 
ever found a more zealous people, or any more appreciative 
of the ordinances of God's house. 

On April 2nd, I returned to Kentucky, and on the 6th 
preached at the old Springfield church ; and raised three 
hundred dollars to repair the church. 

On April 8i.h, I amended the regular meeting of Pres- 
bytery at Midway. 

On the 10th, I visited McKinney, in Lincoln county, 
where I had organized a church in December, 1882. The 
congregation had built a new and beautiful church, which I 
dedicated on Sabbath, April 13, in presence of a very 
large congregation. This church, with its indefatigable 
pastor, Rev. John E. Triplett, deserves especial mention for 
their zeal and liberality. Though few in number, they 
have wrought a great work. At the dedication, $172 were 
raised to finish paying off a debt on the house. I remained 
here until the 16th. Fifteen persons were received into the 
church, most of them on profession, and ten children baptized. 

On April 20, I preached for Rev. I. S. McElroy at 
Standford, and on the 2 2d met the Evangelist Committee at 
Louisville. 



162 THE SOUL WINNEE. 

On April 27 I went to assist Rev. Dr. E. M. Green, at 
the First Presbyterian church, Danville, Ky. This ,church 
had been recently very handsomely repaired. Large con- 
gregations assembled day and night to hear the gospel, and 
twenty- eight persons were added to Dr. Green's church on 
profession, besides several by letter. A hundred years have 
diminished nothing of the zeal, but added much to the effi- 
ciency of this grand old mother Church, under its faithful 
pastor. 

On May 11 I preached the funeral discourse of Col. Win. 
S. Lane, at the Springfield church, Bath county. 

On May 14, I began a meeting at Campbellsville, in 
Taylor county, where I remained a week, preaching to large 
and attentive congregations. On Sabbath, the 18th, I dedi- 
cated the new and substantial brick church, and raised a 
subscription of some $1,200 to pay off a debt incurred in its 
erection. To the honor of this people, be it said, this ex- 
pensive church was built under very many discouragements, 
and before the organization of a church. 

On May 20, I organized a church of some fifty members 
(twenty-eight of whom united at this meeting), most of them by 
profession; and the others removing their membership from 
the Bethel church, in the country. Over this church we or- 
dained Daniel Moore, John N. Turner, Dr. E. B. Fleece 
and Henry Hazard to be elders; and Charles Patterson, 
George Weatherby and John Cloyd to be deacons — all most 
excellent men. During these services I had the faithful and 
efficient assistance of Rev. Wm.'M. Crenshaw, pastor of 
Bethel church, to whom more than any other man, perhaps, 
this flourishing young church in Campbellsville, owes its 
existence. 



EVANGELISTIC EEPORT. 163 

On May 25, I began a meeting at Frankfort, the capital 
of the State. You are aware of the peculiar situation in this 
city. The only Presbyterian church there continues to hold 
its connection with the Northern Church. A number of our 
people in the city had gone into other churches, or were liv- 
ing out of any. They determined to arise and build a house 
of their own. This they did, erecting, with much labor and 
sacrifice, a beautiful and commodious house of worship on 
the south side of the Kentucky river, in a population of 2,500 
without a church. This new church I dedicated on Sabbath, 
June 1. The services were continued through the week, 
and forty-four persons united with the church, principally on 
profession. On May 30, with a committee of West Lexington 
Presbytery, we organized a church of forty members, with 
Captain Thos. G. Poore, Jos. Robinson and Peter Jett, as 
elders, and S. T. Fortune as deacon. On June 1, the Sab- 
bath school was organized with seventy-one members; and 
$130 raised to pay off a debt on the church. 

All this was accomplished in the face of great opposition 
from unexpected sources. But God graciously restrained the 
wrath of man, and made the remainder of it to praise Him ! 
This church has gone on prospering since its organization, 
and hopes soon to have a faithful pastor. 

It has been supplied regularly with preaching, part of 
the time by Rev. W. D. Morton, an evangelist of Synod. 
During the progress of the meeting, we had the efficient help, 
at different times, of Rev. Messrs. Hitner, Morrison, YVither- 
spoon, Hunter, Cecil and Keller. 

On June 15, 1 preached for Rev. Dr. Bartlett, in the 
First church, Lexington, and raised a subscription of $561 to 
assist in our work of building churches, God loves this 



164 THE SOUL WINNER. 

people. They are cheerful givers. At 4. p. m. on same day, 
I preached at Salem church, in Clark county, and took up a 
collection of Sroo more for the same purpose — a very liberal 
subscription for a small country church. 

On June 19, I preached at Owingsville, and made ar- 
rangements for building a church there. A beautiful lot has 
been purchased, and a kiln of brick burned for the church, 
and both paid for. 

On June 22, I preached for Rev. Dr. Van Lear, at 
Winchester, and the generous congregation subscribed $210 
for our mountain work, in addition to large private subscrip- 
tions given previously. At 4 p. m.. same day, I preached for 
Rev. Dr. Ewing, at Union church', in the country and raised 
a subscription of $73.75 for the same purpose. All of which 
sums received have been judiciously applied to the erection 
of church buildings at Mt. Sterling, Hazle Green, Olive Hill, 
Beth Salem, Sand Hill, etc., etc. 

On June 23, I began a meeting at Olive Hill, in Carter 
county, and preached there a week. There were thirty-four 
members added to the church on profession. This little 
mountain church, organized scarcely two years ago, now 
numbers nearly a hundred members; has a large prayer- 
meeting regularly sustained, a Sabbath school of sixty odd 
members, a band of praying, working members, and a faithful 
shepherd in Rev. L. E. Scott. Through much tribulation 
and poverty they have built a commodious and comfortable 
church, the first in the village, now nearly ready for dedica- 
tion. They raised a subscription of $250 for their preacher, 
Mr. Scott, who is also evangelist of Carter county. 

On July 5, I went to Irvine with Rev. Jno. B. DeVault, 
who went as evangelist for Estill county. I remained in the 



EVANGELISTIC REPORT. 165 

county a week, laboring with Mr. DeVault at Irvine, and 
Sand Hill, in the country. Eight new members were added 
to the church, a Sabbath school of some fifty scholars organ- 
ized at Irvine, with good officers and teachers. The Sand 
Hill brethren, though very poor, raised a subscription of $70 
for their young preacher. He has done faithful and efficient 
work over the whole county, and is greatly beloved by all 
the people. The Sand Hill congregation is now engaged in 
building a house of worship. 

On July 19, I began a meeting at Frenchburg, in Meni- 
fee county. There was no church in the town (though 
the county-seat), and we preached in the court-house. 
Messrs. Mickel and Cooper, of Hazle Green, were present, 
and rendered efficient help. The weather was very hot. 
There were only three Presbyterians in the county, one old 
lady and two youths. But there were many who prayed for 
God's blessing, and he sent it, as he always does. On Sunday, 
the 27th, we organized a Presbyterian church of sixty eight 
members, with five good officers : Henry D. Combs, James 
H. Williams, and Lilburn Hackney, for elders, and Joseph 
Phelps and Sam V. Clark, for deacons. Two others were 
elected but not yet ordained. Sickness compelled me to 
close after one week's service. As Revs. Drs. Bartlett and 
Hunter returned from Presbytery at Hazle Green, in Sep- 
tember, they stopped and preached a week for this infant 
church, greatly edifying it, and adding thirteen more to its 
membership, giving it now eighty-one members. It is the 
only church of our order in the county. They hope to build 
a house of worship in the near future. 

Garrett Combs, a young member of the church, and son 
of an elder, offered himself as a candidate for the ministry 



166 THE SOUL WINNER. 

at the last meeting of West Lexington Presbytery, was re- 
ceived, and is now at Central University prosecuting his 
studies. The congregation invited Rev. E. P. Mickel to 
supply their church, which he has done regularly. 

In June, Mr. Mickel, assisted by Mr. Cooper, had held 
a meeting on Grassy Creek, in Morgan county, and sixteen 
persons had united with the Presbyterian church. On 
August 3, by their invitation, I visited the field, and preached 
in an old log building for a week — a house without doors, 
windows, lights, or pews. Large congregations attended, 
and twenty-two persons joined our church. On Sabbath, 
August 10, we organized a Presbyterian church of thirty - 
eight members, named by the congregation, Beth Salon. 
Five good officers were installed over this church : Uev. 
James M. Little (of the M. E. church), j. W. Haney and 
Geo. Chaney, for elders ; and J. H. Wallin and J. Z. Haney 
for deacons. This is our first church in Morgan county. 

Mr. Wallin, the deacon, applied to Presbytery in Sep- 
tember as a candidate for the ministery, was received, and will 
enter Central University this fall. This congregation is now 
engaged in building a house of worship, so greatly needed. 
As they are not able to build alone they are building in 
partnership with sister denominations. They invited Rev. 
E. P. Mickel to supply them, which he has continued to do 
regularly, assisted by Mr. Cooper. 

On August 15, a number of my class-mates of Union 
Theological Seminary (1875), assembled at my home, and 
spent ten da} s in a pleasant and profitable reunion. They 
preached daily at the Springfield church, from Sabbath until 
Friday, greatly to the pleasure and profit of the congregation. 
On Sabbath, August 24. I preached the closing sermon, and 



EVANGELISTIC REPORT. 167 

received two adults into the church, and baptized them and 
their two children. Here I raised a subscription of $50 for 
the Mount Sterling church. 

On Tuesday, August 26, I began a meeting at Mt. 
Tabor church, in Clark county. The services continued 
until Sabbath night, the 31. There were eighteen new 
members added to the church, which now numbers some 120 
members, has a fine Sabbath school, and the best singing I 
know of in any country church in the State. 

This will be remembered as the church organized in 
the bar-room and grocery at Comb's Ferry, on the Kentucky 
river, two years ago. The last evening a subscription was 
raised for the assistance of the church at Mt. Sterling, and 
$63 secured. During this meeting I had the cordial and 
faithful help of Rev. Dr. D. R. Ewing, the supply at the 
church. 

On September 4, I went to the regular meeting of West 
Lexington Presbytery, at Hazle Green, in Wolfe county. 

So for as I know, this was the first meeting of a Presby- 
tery ever held in the mountains of Kentucky. It was a 
pleasant and profitable meeting, both to the Presbytery and 
the people. The attendance was good, considering the dis- 
tance and the roads to be traveled, forty-five miles from Mt. 
Sterling and most of the way in road wagons. 

The meeting was held in the new Presbyterian church, 
and all were delighted. All the new churches were repre- 
sented, and three new candidates for the ministry, from these 
mountain churches, were received under care of Presbytery, 
and upwards of $400 were given by members of Presbytery 
to various local causes. 

On Monday, September 8, Rev. Mr. Cooper and I 



168 THE SOUL WINNER. 

started to Breathitt county, a large county of seven thousand 
inhabitants, on the headwaters of the Kentucky river. On 
Tuesday, after twenty-six miles ride over very rough moun- 
tain roads, we reached Jackson, the county seat, on the north 
fork of the Kentucky river, some three hundred miles above 
Frankfort, by the river. It is a little village of some two 
dozen houses, surrounded by high mountains. The past 
history of the county had won for it the unenviable name of 
"bloody Breathitt." Twice the State troops have been sent 
to this county to repress violence and arrest offenders. There 
was neither church or school house in the town. The Meth- 
odist church had a few members, the Reform, a few more, 
but the Presbyterian, not one. 

The people gave us a kind reception, for though, some- 
times, taking the law into their own hands, they are a brave 
and generous people. Among them are many who deprecated 
the lawlessness of the past, and wish and hope for better 
tilings in the future. The congregations increased from a 
small beginning until the court-house was crowded. Some 
opposition at first was swept away in the tide of blessing God 
poured upon the people. Amid these everlasting hills God 
had a remnant of praying people. They prayed and He 
answered as He had promised. 

In some ten days, one hundred and twenty nine persons 
made public profession of faith in the Lord Jesus. Ninety - 
four of these were duly organized into a Presbyterian church, 
with Charles J. Little, Wiley H. Combs, James W. Clark, 
Theo. G. Cundiff and John E. Patrick for elders ; and Dr. T. 
M. Hill, John J C. Back and A. H. Baker for deacons. A 
subscription of $720 was raised to build a Presbyterian church, 
the first church iu the town, and the first in the county. 



EVANGELISTIC REPORT. 169 

Thirty-three of the professors went into the Methodist church, 
as they had the privilege of doing. 

The congregation unanimously called Rev. Mr. Mickel, 
of Hazle Green, to supply their church, which he consented 
to do. 

On Sabbath afternoon, Rev. Mr. Mickel and I went to 
Cane Creek school house, four miles from Jackson, and be- 
gan a meeting, which was continued by Rev. Messrs. Mickel, 
Cooper and James M. Little until the following Thursday, 
resulting in forty-six professions, sixteen of trie number united 
with our church in Jackson, giving it one hundred and ten 
members. During this extraordinary meeting, I. had the 
efficient help of these brethren, and the co-operation of some 
good people of other churches. 

The organization of this church completes the circuit of 
four churches, in four adjoining countie?, of two hundred and 
eighty one members, now under the faithful pastoral care of 
Rev. E. P. Mickel, of Hazle Green. 

All of these churches have been organized in the last 
two years, in a country where there were neither Presbyte- 
rian churches, preachers, or members. To God be all the 
glory ! The Synod has been his honored instrument in its 
accomplishment. 

On Sabbath, September 28, I preached at the Spring- 
field church, Bath county, and moderated a congregational 
meeting, which called Rev. I. S. McErloy to be pastor. On 
Wednesday, October 1, I preached at Mt. Sterling, and 
moderated a meeting of that church, which also called Rev. 
Mr. EcElroy, uniting with the Springfield church, dividing 
his time, and promising him $1,400 salary for the two 
churches. 



l/n THE SOUL WINNER. 

On Sabbath, October 5, I preached for Rev. Dr. E. M. 
Green, at Danville, and raised a subscription of $280 to assist 
in our church building. The same evening I preached at 
Harrodsburg for Rev. J. J. Chisolm, and raised a subscrip- 
tion of $205 for the same purpose. These subscriptions were 
very libera], considering the fact that one church had just 
made a similar offering, and the other owed a considerable 
sum for extensive repairs made on its house. On Monday 

and Tuesday nights, this week, I preached at New Hope, 

.% 
Nelson county. I was happy to find this faithful little flock 

gradually gaining ground under the pastoral care of Rev. S. 

F. Taylor. 

During the year I have preached three hundred and one 
times, received six hundred and twelve peisons into the 
church, organized five new churches, ordained and installed 
thirty officers, dedicated four new churches, and raised in 
money and subscriptions $8,463.50. 

Out of these new churches are five young candidates 
for the ministry ; and six other churches are engaged in build- 
ing new houses. This completes my labors for the year. 

In this rapid review of a year's labors, I have neces- 
sarily given but the brief outline of the work. Many most 
interesting details might be given, and valuable lessons drawn, 
but for want of time. 

In conclusion, I feel compelled reluctantly to ask to be 
relieved entirely or in part from so exacting and laborious a 
work. The demands of my health require more rest than I 
have been able to take in such constant and severe labor. 

The demands of a family of little children require my 
presence much more frequently than 1 can give it in a life 
which keeps me almost constantly away from my home. 



EVANGELISTIC REPORT. 171 

My duty tc myself and my family requires some respite 
from the duties I have tried to discharge as your evangelist 
for two years and nine months. 

I rejoice with you that, by the blessing of God, these 
labors have not been in vain. Guided and upheld by his 
omnipotent hand, I have been enabled, in these two years 
and nine months, to preach eight hundred and thirty-four 
times, and received into the church one thousand eight hun- 
dred and forty seven persons, organized fifteen new churches, 
and re-organized three old ones, which had died out, or- 
dained and installed over them seventy-eight officers, recom- 
mended thirteen young candidates for the ministry, princi- 
pally from these new churches — most of them now in Central 
University, dedicated nine new churches, and assisted six 
others now being built, and raised in money and subscrip- 
tions for various causes of our Church $11,538. 

Truly, "it is the Lord's doing and marvellous in our 
eyes." No one could be more deeply impressed than I have 
been with the manifest tokens of God's band in all this work. 
No one could more sensibly feel that our, "sufficiency is of 
him." 

And if I have learned any lesson better than another in 
all this varied experience, it is that the "gospel is the power of 
God unto salvation to every one that believeth," and that it 
needs only be preached plainly, earnestly and effectionately, 
and, above all, prayerfully, to accomplish God's pleasure in 
the salvation of men. I have never seen it fail ; I never ex- 
pect to. If God is true it can not fail. 

And in all this labor, the greatest support I received was 
in the assurance in his word, and the proof I had everywhere 
that God is true. 



172 THE SOUL WINNER. 

For the privilege of doing this work, I return this vener- 
able and beloved Synod my profoundest thanks. That God 
may grant you the wisdom and the consecration to carry out 
this great work to which he has called you, I humbly pray. 
That he will gloriously reward you, I assuredly know. 

His word and His providences call you to larger fields 
and richer conquests. You do not know the vast destitutions 
within the bounds of your own beloved commonwealth. You 
can not see the ten thousands of hands held forth imploringly 
begging for the bread of life. But they are there, behind the 
barriers of your great mountains, and I only echo the cry I 
have heard from their sorrowful homes to your symp iiizing 
hearts; that you may hear it and answer it in v : *s be- 

yond treasures of earth and time, I humbly *en I 

know you will hear their Master say, " Cot olessed of 

my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the 
foundation of the world; for I w is a hungered, and ye gave 
me meat; I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink; I was a 
stranger and ye took me in in ; naked, and ye clothed me; I 
was sick, and ye visited me ; I was in prison, and ye came 
unto me; for inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the 
least of these, my brethren, ye have done it unto me." 



EVANGELISTIC REPOKT. 173 

LAST REPORT TO SYNOD, OCTOBER, 1885. 

MT. STERLING KENTUCKY. 
To the Venerable Synod ©f Kentucky — Fathers and Brethren : 

I have the honor to submit this, my fourth annual report 
of my labors as your evangelist for the Synodical year now 
closing. By your permission, I was released from my work 
in Kentucky for six months during last winter. Much of 
this time I spent in the South, preaching at Mobile, Ala., 
Charleston, S. C, Lynchburg, Va., and Charleston, W. Va., 
assisting my brethren in these cities in their work. Also at 
Louisville, Paris, and Lexington, Ky. At all of these cities 
I had the cordial and efficient co-operation of my brethren, 
and God abundantly blessed his truth, and some 500 mem- 
bers were added to the church. 

On the 1st of May I resumed my evangelistic work in 
Kentucky. My first visit was made to our new church at 
Frankfort, where I spent a few days laboring with the pastor, 
Rev. Robert E. Caldwell. I found the church prospering 
under his faithful ministry, with a most encouraging outlook 
for the future. Sickness compelled me to leave after a few 
days' service There were three persons added to the church. 

Crab Orchard. — On the 14th of May I went to Crab 
Orchard, in Lincoln county, to assist Rev. A. S Moffett, of 
Stanford. I remained there some five days preaching in the 
Baptist church. There were a few earnest Christians there, 
who worked and prayed for God's blessing. As a result, we 
organized a Presbyterian church, on the 1 8th of May, with 
some thirty-five members, twenty of them joined on pro- 
fession of faith. The meeting was continued by Brotiiers 
Moffett and Job E, Triplett, and several other additions 



174 THE SOUL WINNER. 

made to the church, which has gone forward under the faith- 
ful ministry of Mr. Moffett. A handsome lot was presented 
to the church, and they hope to* have their own house of 
worship. On the 24th of May I visited our church at Cat- 
lettsburg, on the Big Sandy river, long without a pastor. I 
remained there three days. The church received two new 
members, and called Rev. Samuel D. Boggs, of Clintonville, 
to be pastor ; and he has entered upon his work with most 
flattering prospects. 

Olive Hill. —On the 31st of May I dedicated the new 
church at Olive Hill, in Carter county. The church received 
one valuable addition, and elected two additional elders. 
This church, only about two years old, has upwards of eighty 
members, a flourishing Sunday School and prayer -meeting, a 
nice house of worship paid for, and regular preaching of the 
gospel. 

On the 7th of June I went to Franklin, in Simpson 
county, and spent a week with Rev. A. D. Tadlock. Ex- 
ceedingly hot weather and other causes interfered with the 
meeting, but God blessed his word, revived his church, and 
added ten new members to the communion of the church. 
This little church and its earnest pastor deserve the success 
God is granting them. They are now engaged in building a . 
handsome brick house of worship. 

Estill Church. — On the 21st of June I went with Rev. 
J. B. DeVault to the mountains of Estill county, where we 
preached a week at the old Furnace. There were five mem- 
bers of our church in the neighborhood, who had joined at a 
previous meeting. During the week there were forty ad- 
ditions, and on Sabbath, 28th, we organized a church of forty- 
five members, with John W. Newkirk for elder and Morgan 



EVANGELISTIC REPORT. 175 

R. Lyle for deacon, Mr. DeVault has supplied this church 
regularly since, and it has a flourishing Sabbath School, and 
a most hopeful future. They have a church already built by 
the Furnace Company. On the 29th I preached at Irvine, 
the county seat of Estill, and received two new members on 
profession. I found this church in better condition than ever, 
with a flourishing Sabbath School and prayer-meeting. On 
the 30th I preached at Sand Hill, where our people were en- 
gaged in building a church. One 1 young man united with 
our church there. By faithful pastoral work this field has 
been greatly encouraged and strengthened in the past year. 

Wilmore Church. — On the 10th of July I went to Jes- 
samine county, where a nice church had been built near Wil- 
more Station, on the Great Southern Railroad, through the 
efforts of Brothers Cecil and Simrall, of Nicholasville and 
Troy. To their faithful labors, with God's blessing, this 
flourishing new church owes its existence. I remained there 
ten days. God poured out His Spirit in power, and sixty- 
six persons were received into the church, (thirteen by letter 
and fifty- three on profession). On the 19th of June, assisted 
by the brethren, we organized the Wilmore church, with G. 
W. Thompson, James S. Hawkins, Robert A. Dodd, John 
Rhorer for elders, and Wm. Patterson, John Lowry, Louis 
S. Roberts and Louis Lowry for deacons. This church is 
composed of some of the best and most substantial citizens of 
Jessamine county. They are now making an effort to have 
regular preaching and a pastor of their own. One promising 
young member of this church has been called to preach the 
Gospel, and is now prosecuting his studies for that purpose. 

Morehead. — On the 2nd of August I visited Morehead, 
the county seat of Rowan county, preached twice, and or' 



176 THE SOUL WINNER. 

ganized a Sabbath school. The presence of soldiers to pre- 
serve the peace, and the excitement prevailing at the time 
rendered a protracted service at the time impracticable. 

Lewisport — On the 9th of August, I visited Lewisport, 
on the lower Ohio river, : and spent a week* with Rev. E. A. 
Cheek. Our little flock there having no cjiurch building, 
occupied the Methodist church. The weather was the hottest 
of the summer, but good congregations heard God's word 
attentively, and seven were added to the church on profes- 
sion. On the 21st of August, I again visited Morehead, 
preached two days in the court-house, and raised a subscrip- 
tion of over $800, to build a church, as there was none in the 
town, and but one in the county. Having secured subscrip- 
tions of some $400 mure, we expect soon to begin a church 
to be used by all Christian denominations. 

Beard's Church. — On the 30 of August, I dedicated 
the new Beard's church, in Scott county, for Rev. C S. 
Thompson, its faithful and efficient pastor. I preached here 
three days, assisting Mr. Thompson. ' There were ten added 
to the church on profession, and over $700 raised to pay off 
a debt on the church. This is one of the handsomest country 
churches in Kentucky — costing nearly $3,000. Not less 
than a thousand people were present on the day of dedica- 
tion ; so that Mr. Thompson and myself both preached to 
overflowing houses, in the old church and new one. In fifty 
years' history of this church, it has had no such outlook for 
the future as now. 

On September rst, with Rev. F. B. Converse, of the 
Christian Observer, I started on a tour through the mountains 
of Eastern Kentucky. ■ That night I preached at French- 
burg, the county seat of Menifee county, and one joined 



EVANGELISTIC REPORT. 177 

the church on profession. Our new church here is engaged 
in building, and have a substantial house already up and 
covered and approaching completion. On the next day, 
Mr. Converse preached at Hazle Green, in Wolfe county, for 
Mr. Mickel. On the next day, we both preached at Beth- 
salem church, in Morgan county, where a new and com- 
modious house of worship has taken the place of the old log 
house, which afforded little protection a year ago. These 
three churches, compose Mr. E. P. Mickel's field, requiring 
great labor and self-denial, and bringing great blessings and 
rewards. 

On September 4th we crossed over from the head of the 
Red river onto the waters of the Kentucky river, in Breathitt 
county, Mr. Converse going to Jackson, the county seat, 
where he preached for several days to our church, greatly to 
their encouragement and delight. 

The Church in the Wilderness. — I went to the White 
Oak school house, near the mouth of Frozen Creek, on the 
North Fork of the Kentucky river, where we held services 
twice a day for a week. Mr. Mickel's little organ furnished 
the. music for the few who knew how. to sing, and God's 
Spirit furnished the power to convert the soul, and sixty-four 
persons united with the church on profession of faith. On 
13th of September, assisted by Rev. Wm. B. Cooper, the 
faithful evangelist of Breathitt county, and elders from our 
Jackson church, we organized a church, with Capt. A. C. 
Cope, Nathan B. Day, Theo. G. Cundiff and John C. M. 
Day for elders, and Thos. Strong, John H. Lovelace, William 
Day and Thomas Sewell for deacons. The congregation 
raised $682 to build themselves a house of worship, which 
they are now preparing to erect. They named their church 



178 THE SOUL WINNER. 

the "Church in the Wilderness" because it stands in the midst 
of a vast and beautiful forest, covering the mountains of 
Eastern Kentucky. Previous visits by our evangelists, Rev. 
Messrs. Mickel, Cooper and Little, had prepared the way for 
this great blessing, as well as the next. God will reward their 
self-denying labors. 

Middle Fork Church — On Sunday evening, after the 
organization of the church, Mr. Cooper and I crossed the 
North Fork of Kentucky river, and over the mountain to War 
creek, where I preached that night at the residence of Mr. 
Theo. G. Cundiff, one of our faithful elders and co-workers. 
Five persons (two of Mr. CundifT's family) accepted Christ 
that night, and were added to the Church in the Wilderness. 
On Monday morning we went to the Middle Fork of the 
Kentucky river. Brothers Converse and Mickel had gone 
over on Saturday and preached on Sabbath. We held our 
services in an old log school house, and near the river, on a 
little creek called " Beginning Branch." We extemporized 
seats with planks, and had the old roof patched to shut out 
some of the rain which poured on the congregation on the 
Sabbath. God heard our prayers and it rained not for the 
rest of the week. A rain would have broken up our meeting. 
The little organ, carried on the shoulders of the mountain 
boys from the North Fork, was on hand to lead our praises to 
God. Brothers Converse and Jas. Little were with us part 
of the week, and Brothers Cooper and Mickel all of it, and 
rendered most valuable assistance. And God was there in 
pentecostal power, to bless His word. The people came and 
heard and believed the Gospel. From Wednesday to Sabbath 
night 117 people made public profession of faith in Christ, 
nd 115 were received into the Presbyterian church, all 



EVANGELISTIC REPORT. 179 

adults but two, and nearly all then and there baptized. On 
Sabbath, September 20, we organized the Middle Fork 
Presbyterian church, with 115 members, only one of whom 
had ever before belonged to our church. The congregation 
elected Calloway Crawford, Jesse Spicer, Samuel Jett, 
Hiram Mullins and Morton Jett to be elders, and Alexander 
Crawford, Hyreanus Jett, Granville Spicer and Kenaz Craw- 
ford to be deacons. These officers were duly ordained and 
installed after a statement of the doctrines. of the Church. 
They are all men of good report and among the best citizens 
of the county. 

The congregation raised $641 to build a house of wor- 
ship in a beautiful situation, presented to the church by Mr. 
Spicer (in his front yard.) 

The contract for building has been let, and the house 
now under way. The congregation was so large on Sabbath 
we were compelled to hold the services out doors under the 
trees, where the people sat and stood patiently and atten- 
tively for four hours, during the sermon, and communion, 
and organization of the church, and public reception of 
twenty-one new members. Other engagements compelled 
us to close the meeting on Sunday night. One youth of good 
promise, a member of this church, desires to prepare himself 
for the ministry and hopes to enter upon his studies soon. 

Jackson. — On Tuesday and Wednesday nights I 
preached at Jackson, and seven persons professed faith in 
Christ, and were received into the church. This church is 
now finishing a beautiful house of worship, the first in the 
town, and about the only one yet in this large county. Mr. 
Cooper, the evangelist of this county, has now three large 
churches, with upwards of three hundred members, where a 



180 THE SOUL WINNER. 

year ago we had neither churchs or members. All, the 
result under God of the evangelistic work of this Synod. On 
Friday, September 25, we had a convention of the officers of 
our new churches in Wolfe, Menifee, Morgan and Breathitt 
counties. This convention assembled in Mr. MickePs 
church, in Hazle Green. Rev. Messrs. Cooper, Mickel, 
Little and myself were present, with officers and members of 
the various churches. Two days were spent most pleasantly 
and- profitably in the discussion of the duties of elders, 
deacons and members of the church, also of parents and 
teachers. We had preaching every morning and night until 
the close of the meeting on Sabbath. Four persons united 
with the church, one of whom, a young gentleman, desires to 
prepare himself for the ministry. 

On October 3, I went to the Silver Creek chapel, in 
Madison county, to assist Rev. Dr. Forman in a few days' 
service. Though a busy season with the farmers, the con- 
gregations were good and three persons were received into 
the church. 

Sand Hill. — On Sabbath, October n, I dedicated the 
new church at Sand Hill, in Estill county, built during the 
summer by our little flock, in partnership with our primitive 
Baptist brethren. It is a very nice, comfortable and sub- 
stantial house. One person united with the church on pro- 
fession, and money enough was raised to pay off our debt on 
the church. 

A constant rain after the Sabbath prevented the continu- 
ance of the services. On Sabbath last I preached at the 
Union church, in Clark county, at n a. m. and 3 p. m., 
dedicated a new church at Winchester for our colored 
brethren, built largely through the efforts of Col. John H. 



EVANGELISTIC REPORT. 181 

Moore, an elder of the Irvine church, " whose praise is in all 
our churches." 

This closed my work for the year. I submit it with pro- 
found gratitude to God for his abundant blessing on these 
humble labors. And I cannot forget to thank this noble 
Synod for its cordial and generous support of this great 
evangelistic work in which we have been engaged. I feel it 
is your work, even more than my own. I have been your 
agent in carrying out the plans you have so wisely devised, 
and so liberally sustained. The visible and immediate re- 
sults of my year's work have been the addition of some 860 
members to the Presbyterian church, besides many who 
united with sister churches. The organization of five new 
churches, with twenty-eight officers and three hundred and 
thirty members. 

The dedication of four new churches (besides one for 
the colored people), the building of seven churches, com- 
pleted or in course of erection, the addition of four young 
men to our roll of candidates, and the raising of $5,243.50 
for the building of churches and support of evangelists and 
candidates. 

In all of this work I have had the cordial support of 
many of my brethren, pastors and evangelists of this and 
other Synods. The blessing is ours ; the glory is God's. 
And now shall I add a word in reference to the prosecution 
of this great work? Is it necessary? These facts speak 
louder than words. They are the voice of God, calling us 
to go up and. possess the land with our brethren. 

Our work is just begun. Its very magnitude oppresses 
us. These churches we have planted, are like beacon lights 
on the shore of a continent of Spiritual darkness. Tens of 



182 THE SOUL WINNER. 

thousands of our neighbors are perishing for the bread of life. 
We must give it to them. 

" Shall we, whose souls are lighted, 

With the wisdom from on high, 
Shall we, to men benighted, 

The lamp of life deny? " 

We cannot if we would. We would not if we could. 

The Gospel, in all its pentecostal power, is still here, 
and the opportunities and facilities for preaching and publish- 
ing it are here in greater number and power than ever before ; 
and the people are here, multitudes of them, and many of 
them who seldom hear the Gospel, and most of them are 
accessible. 

No outlay in God's service pays larger dividends than 
such missionary labor. Many of my brethren here to-day 
can testify to this fact. The whole history of this evangelistic 
work is an overwhelming demonstration of this fact. In the 
three years and nine months I have served this Synod as an 
evangelist, there have been, under my ministry 2,707 persons 
added to the Presbyterian church, twenty-three churches 
organized, fifteen churches built, 96 officers ordained and in- 
stalled, seventeen candidates offered for the Gospel ministry, 
fourteen churches dedicated and $16,781 raised for the build- 
ing of churches and support of evangelists and candidates for 
the ministry. Add to this all that has been done by all 
our other evangelists, and all that has been accomplished by 
sister churches, under the stimulus and encouragement ot 
our example ! God alone knows, and eternity alone will 
reveal, the results of this work of the Synod of Kentucky. 
Bat, my brethren, it is just begun. These are but a cluster of 
grapes from the brook of Eshcol. The mighty vintage of 



EVANGELISTIC EEPORT. 183 

immortal souls is yet to be gathered. I am thoroughly con- 
vinced of our duty, and as thoroughly convinced of the evil 
consequences of its neglect, both to us as individuals, and as 
a church. We are debtors to give this people the Gospel, 
and as a great bishop once said of the perishing millions of 
other lands, we say of these, "The question is not so much 
whether these people can be saved without the Gospel, as 
whether we, ourselves, can be saved if we fail to give it 
to them. ' 

We must do it. God has answered that question in the 
most emphatic manner. 

We are now at Kadesh Barnea, on the borders of the 
promised land. We must go up with Joshua and Caleb to 
possess it, or turn back with the cowards to perish in the 
wilderness of unbelief. God commands us to " go forward," 
and though the sea and the wilderness and the Anakim may 
interpose mighty obstacles to our advance, the same God 
who opened a way through the sea, and fed his children in 
the wilderness, and slew the sons of Anak in fenced cities, is 
with us to-day and forever. 



184 THE SOUL WINNER. 



EASTERN KENTUCKY. 



A PREACHING TOUR THROUGH THE MOUNTAINS, SEPTEMBER, 

1889. 



Through the kindness of my own people, and by direc- 
tion of the Synod of Kentucky, I have been making an evan- 
gelistic tour through the mountains of Eastern Kentucky. 
The Church has such great interest in this work that a word 
as to its progress may not be out of place. 

On September 9, I left my homeland reached French- 
burg in Menifee county, on the evening of the 10th. 
Brother Mickle accompanied me from Mt. Sterling to Hazle 
Green, in Wolfe county. 

The brethren sent horses to meet us at the terminus of 
the railroad, five miles from Frenchburg. A mountain lay 
between. My horse proved to be blind, and insisted on 
running away over the mountains. He was no more foolish 
than some men, who rush blindly into eternity. 

I found Brother Andrew Irvine in charge of our church 
here. He also teaches a large school, and is doing a fine 
work. I preached at night to a crowded house. The little 
mountain town grows slowly and changes but little. Old' 
Mother Ward, who was the only Presbyterian in the county 
when I organized the church, is still living. 

On Wednesday we went on to Hazle Gree-n, in Wolfe 
county, over twenty miles of as bad a road as one could im- 
agine a wagon could go over. Our team ran away down the 
"Winding Stairs," because a backing strap broke. We all 



EASTERN KENTUCKY. 185 

got out before the wagon struck a big rock at the bottom. 
Brother Mickel left early, and rather precipitately, having a 
better knowledge of the road. I believe I got out last, but 
not until the " breeching broke." We reached Hazle Green 
about dark, and I preached to a large congregation in the 
first Presbyterian church ever built in these mountains. This 
is one of the churches in charge of Messrs. Mickel and James 
Little. 

On Thursday morning Brother Mickel returned to his 
his home at Jackson, and I went across to our Beth Salem 
church in Morgan county, in company with Brother James 
Little. I preached there both morning and night. This 
young church has already furnished a candidate for the min- 
istry. 

On Friday we crossed over the Red River to Gilmore 
church in Wolfe county, where I preached morning and night. 
This is a new church organized by Messrs. Little and Mickel 
since my last visit to these mountains. The morning congre- 
gation was small on account of the big crop of apples. (The 
farmers were busy making brandy) I alluded to the sub- 
ject that night, and the still was silent the next morning. 
Can not say what stopped it, whether it was the sermon or the 
want of apples. Brother Little lives near this church, and I 
was his guest. His farm is on the steep sides of two moun- 
tains — his house, a double log one— but his home is a model 
Christian home. I never knew one that was better ordered. 
He is an educated, Christian gentlemen, who never went to 
school but four months in his life. 

On Saturday, the 14th, we crossed the mountains to 
Jackson, the county seat of Breathitt, on the North Fork of 
the Kentucky river, twenty miles of road as bad as a horse 



186 THE SOUL WINNER. 

could traveL We found Van Cleve's little chapel on the 
Frozen, burned by some bad man. It was only a little log 
cabin, but was the only church in Breathitt county when we 
first went there some five years ago. We rode through some 
as poor country as I ever saw. 

Between two big mountains stood a little cabin in the 
midst of a wilderness, and not a fence, or garden, or field, 01 
living thing in sight — not even a goose. A visit to this county 
would help some people who are never contented. 

We reached Jackson, on the North Fork of the Ken- 
tucky river, before dark, and I preached at night to a large 
congregation, in our handsome new church. 

I found Jackson much improved since our first visit, 
some five years ago. A large brick Court House, a fine brick 
academy, a number of handsome residences, aud Brother 
Mickel' s parsonage— our first parsonage in the mountains — 
all have been built in a few years. 

Before the sermon, 1 baptised Guerrant Mickel, the little 
preacher of the parsonage. I was happy to find our faithful 
evangelist so well fixed in his new home, built largely by the 
brethren in the interior. 

On Sabbath morning we "took up our carriages" early, 
and carried them twelve miles across two mountains, to our 
new church on the Middle Fork of the Kentucky river, where 
I preached at n A. M. to over 500 people, filling the house 
and yard. The occasion was the funeral of Newton Jett, who 
had been dead some fifteen years. 

After dinner, Messrs. Mickel and Little preached the 
funeral of two of his daughters — the Mrs. Spicers. It is the 
custom of the people to have a funeral discourse, soon or late, 
over their dead. After the funerals I preached again at 3:30 



EASTERN KENTUCKY. 187 

P. M . We closed the day's services at 5 P. M. with a crowded » 
house. This is the only church building on this beautiful 
river, which is one hundred miles long. The people came 
far and near. On Monday morning Brother Mickel and I 
preached two more funerals, of the infant children of Hiram 
Mullins, one of the elders of the church. After the services, 
three ladies united with the chnrch. 

Brother Mickel returned to Jackson and Frozen Creek, 
while Brother Little and I went to the Lower Twin Creek to 
preach at Matt Bowman's. A tremendous rain overtook us 
and I got soaking wet. The house was full of people on our 
arrival at 5 p. m., so I preached without a chance to get dry. 
On invitation, five persons accepted Christ, Mr. Bowman 
among them. 

The old schoolmaster, on Puncheon Camp, nine miles 
off, dismissed his school and came to church. 

It was nearly dark when service was over, and clever 
Matt Bowman invited them all to stay all night. I counted 
nineteen there the next morning, and we all slept in two 
rooms. These people are the soul of hospitality. I slept 
soundly under the patter of the rain on the roof over my 
head ; so soundly I did not observe a strange bedfellow, 
when the old schoolmaster got into my cot by mistake in the 
dark. 

At the mouth of the Twin creeks we had stopped and 
tried to get the use of the convict prison to preach in, but it 
was too full. These convicts are at work on the Kentucky 
Union railroad, now being built through these mountain 
counties to Jackson. 

It rained all day Tuesday, but good congregations filled 
Mr. Bowman's little house, and were fed at his table. I 



188 THE SOUL WINNER. 

preached at 10 a. m., and 4 p. m., and twelve more united 
with the church. 

Wednesday was a clear, cool day, after the big fog lifted 
itself from the mountain valleys. 

I preached at Mr. Bowman's again at 10 a. m., but after 
dinner crossed a mountain to Bear Creek, in Lee county, 
where I preached at 4 p. m. Our road, or bridle path (for 
there are no real roads in this country), to the Bear creek, 
lay through an unbroken wilderness of magnificent forest 
trees — the abode of wild animals and rattlesnakes. We 
passed only one house on the way, where old Reuben 
Fletcher had raised twenty children. 

The school house on Bear Creek was open all around, 
so the people could hear about as well outside as in. 

We had a large and most attentive congregation. After 
preaching sixteen came forward to accept Christ. 

If you could have heard the shouting, you might have 
taken it for a Methodist revival. 

People have different ways of expressing their joy — and 
I did not interfere. Paul was all things to all men ! I never 
object to people being in earnest Twelve of the sixteen had 
never made a public confession before, and some were old. 

The people of Kentucky know nothing of the religious 
destitution of this country. There is no church or regular 
preaching in this region. The people are perishing for the 
bread of life. 

I preached at the Bear Creek schoolhouse twice the next 
dav, and ten more united with the church. The young 
teacher (an exceedingly bright girl and fine teacher) dis- 
missed her school and united with the church. 

After the evening service, I took up a subscription to 



EASTERN KENTUCKY. 189 

build a house of worship, and secured enough to insure its 
completion. 

Two men agreed to give all the lumber for the house. 

It will be built near where the Twin creeks empty into 
the Middle Fork of Kentucky river, and on the line of the 
Kentucky Union railroad and near the depot. On Friday 
morning we crossed from Bear Creek to Ivy Patch Creek, 
also in Lee county, where I preached at the house of widow 
Lee Parmer The house and porch were crowded at 10 a. 
m. and 4 p. m., and six more confessed Christ and received 
baptism, making forty-nine in all. These were organized 
into the Twin Creek Church, with Madison Bowman, Sr., 
and John W. Parmer for elders; and A. J. Bowman, deacon, 
as good men as any country affords. 

This completed our work in this neighborhood and con- 
sumed all our available time. To God be all the glory, as 
His was all the power. 

This new church will be in charge of Messrs. Mickel 
and Little, our evangelists in this field. 

It is well located and has a wide field of usefulness. 
This country is being rapidly developed by the construction 
of the Kentvcky Union railroad, the first which ever pene- 
trated the vast mineral and timber lands of the Upper Ken- 
tucky river. I stopped to preach at the school house on 
War Creek, on Saturday morning. A 4:30 p. m., we reached 
the pretty new church at the Forks of Frozen, and found 
brother Mickel preaching an impressive sermon on the Chris- 
tian soldier, and his armor and weapons. 

This letter leaves me here to spend the Sabbath, and a 
day or two next week, after which I return to my own 
patient people. 



190 THE S^rL WINNER 

This completes the circuit of our churches in this part 
of the mountains. Eight of them, with some 50c members. 
all the fruit of our Synod's evangelistic work in five years. 

What glory it brings to God. and what good to m 
only eternity will reveal. 

May God give our church the wisdom, and the grace to 
continue the work until the Master comes. 

Edward O. Guerr.ant. 



EXTRACTS FROM DIARY. 191 



EXTRACTS FROM DIARY. 



The following extracts from my diary will give an idea 
of the daily life of our mountain evangelists. The difficul- 
ties and encouragements of the work. 

Saturday, Aug. 2nd, 1884. 

Started to Hazel Green in Wo.lfe county, at 7 o'clock a. 
m. on the Coal railroad. No one met me at Rothwell, the 
end of the road, and I had to walk three miles toward 
Frenchburg, over the Big Slate Hill, with Prof. Hayes, of 
Hazel Green. A hot day. Stopped at Joe Cobb's and got 
my dinner, and set Newt. Colyer's boy's shoulder. I rode 
down to Frenchburg and thence on to Maytown on Will 
Day's horse. At Maytown I got in mail wagon of Douglas 
Hackney and came on to Hazel Green by dark. Stopped at 
Col. Samuel's ; 'Pieratt House" and stayed tonight. Very 
tired. First saw our new church; unfinished. 

Sunday, August 3rd, 1884. 
Beautiful day. Bro. W. B. Cooper took little John and 
an organ and me out to the old log church on Upper Caney. 
Heard Bro. Jim Wheeler and Bro. Leander Lacey preach ; 
the first, an earnest old Baptist, as unlearned as could be 
wished by his brethren ; the latter, a rather bright son of my 
old friend and patient, Mose Lacey, and a Reformer. I made 
a few remarks after they got through. Took dinner at Bro. 
Haney's and preached to a large congregation — Luke 11, 10. 
Bro. Cooper was to preach at night but failed to return from 
Hazel Green, and I had to preach again at 7 p. m. though 
very tired and hoarse. The old log house was very open. 



192 THE SOUL WINNER, 

A horse could jump through the opening on one side, and 
men and beys come in and go out where there is no door. A 
large congregation sat patiently on split log benches, very 
rough and uncomfortable. I staid to-night at Dick Phipps 
Long's on the hill. 

Monday, August 4th. 1884. 

Had services at 3 p. m. and at early candle lighting, in 
the old church. Election day, and this church is the voting 
place of Upper Grassy precinct. A crowd of men and 
boys present all day, voting and dancing to the banjo, and 
jumping and eating ginger cakes. I preached at 3 p. M. to a 
crowded house. Election suspended during preaching. 
Mattie Virginia Haney and Adeline Patrick confessed Chrst. 
I preached at night. Rev. James Little (of M. E. church) 
joined on Thursday night. By appointment the congrega- 
tion (of twenty-nine members) elected Rev. James M Little. 
James Wilburn Haney and George Chaney to be elders, and 
J. Zach Haney and Jas. Henry Wallin to be deacons; all 
excellent men ; no beUer in the country. 

Saturday, August 9th, 1884. 

Another cool morning and cloudy day. Threatening 
rain all week, but no rain. The coolest week I nearly ever 
knew in August — Remarkable. Mrs. Mickel and children at 
brother Haney's. I staid at brother Blanks' last night, with 
a crowd. Slept with "big Jehu" in the shed room. (O, me! 
Jehu forgets to wash his feet.) Very hoarse and very tired. 
Worn out with continual work. Must rest. People had a 
general meeting to discuss building a new church. Squire 
Jim Nickel and son and brother Maddox and I spoke. 
Did'nt come to any conclusion ; postponed determination 
until next Saturday, as usual here. 



EXTKACTS FKOM DIARY. 193 

Sunday, August iotb, 1884. 
Cool and damp morning in the mountains. A big fog 
fills the valleys. Brother Mickel went to Hazel Green to fill 
his regular appointment. Brother Maddox of United Baptist 
church preached an hour and ten minutes on most every- 
thing. Worn out. I preached at 3 p. m. to a great crowd. 
Began by giving outline of doctrines of our church, then or- 
dained and installed the officers — Rev. Jas. M. Little and 
Wilburn Haney and Geo. Chaney to be elders, also Zach 
Haney and Henry Wallin to be deacons; all fine men.* I 
then preached on Luke xv: 1. " Drawing near to Jesus," 
and on invitation, Richard Menifee Wilson and his wife, and 
three others came forward and joined on profession. Closed 
our meeting, and organized a church of thirty-eight members, 
and five good officers. Bid all good bye and went to Hazel 
Green to preach to-night. Drove a young horse in an old 
buck wagon, with Mrs. Mickel and her two babies, and an 
organ and our baggage, all to town, over a bad road. Got 
there alive and thankful. Brother Cooper preached to a fine 
congregation, well, on John xiv: 1-3. Church not yet done. 
No pews, nor plastering. 



"*These three brethren — James M. Little, J. Zach Haney and J. 
Henry Wallin are uow all in the gospel ministry ; two are evangelists 
in Kentucky, and one pastor of the church at Umatilla, Florida. 



194 THE SOUL WINNER 



FROM THE CHURCH IN THE WILDERNESS. 



EVANGELISTIC TOUR THROUGH THE MOUNTAINS OF 
KENTUCKY. 



In compliance with an order of West Lexington Presby- 
tery, requiring every minister to spend at least two weeks 
during the summer in evangelistic work, brother E. P. Mickel 
of Grayson, and I started on a tour through the mountains of 
Eastern Kentucky, on August 19th. 

FRENCHBURG. 

Our first appointment was at Frenchburg, the county 
seat of Menifee, a little village literally surrounded by moun- 
tains. Brother Mickel preceded me one day and preached 
to a good congregation in the new church. 

Two years ago there was not a church in the town, and 
but one Presbyterian in the county; now we have a neat and 
comfortable Presbyterian church building, and an organiza- 
tion of eighty odd members. So much for the evangelistic 
work of our Synod. Our church has also a regular prayer- 
meeting and a Sabbath school, probably the only ones in 
town, and attended by all denominations. The brethren of 
the Reformed church are also building a good church, but 
need help from some of their richer brethren. They ought 
to have it. By a misunderstanding no conveyance met me 
at the terminus of the little narrow-guage mountain railroad. 
So like Paul, " I took up my carriage" (knapsack and over- 
coat) and walked over the mountoin, five miles, to French- 
burg. It was warm, but I reached the village just in time to 



THE CHURCH IN THE WILDERNESS. 195 

preach to a house crowded with a most attentive congrega- 
tion, including nearly every school teacher in the county, for 
the Teachers'Institute was in session in the town. 

Things were mightly changed since I organized this little 
church in the old court house a little over two years ago. 
Then, we had just light enough to see how to talk; now a 
nice chandelier enabled us to read without 'specs'. 

Then, the only organ was a crying babe ; now, a hand- 
some organ skillfully played by a young lady, led a full 
chorus of singers. 

Then, dear old Grandmother Ward constituted the Pres- 
byterian church of Menifee county, elders, deacons, members 
and all ; now a church of some 75 members, with some 
faithful offitcers, assist the old lady in holding up the cross 
above the mountains. This is the "Alexander Church" 
named in honor of its generous elder patron. 

The next morning brother Mickel and I talked to the 
Teachers' Institute by invitation, and as we had both been 
pedagogues, we felt at home with "the rule and ferule." The 
Institute was composed of a fine body of young ladies and 
gentlemen, and was presided over by a prince of teachers, 
Prof. Hayes. At 12 m., brother Mickel and I started on to 
Hazel Green, in Wolfe county, to meet an appointment that 
night. 

The little mountain "hack" was too full to take us up 
the mountain from Frenchburg, and so we walked two and a 
half miles to the top and there got seats for the remaining 
twenty miles. The roads were very rough and the day hot, 
but we reflected that both were more pleasant than many that 
our fathers knew. The day was not a " fiery furnace/' nor 
the road the "Via Dolorosa." 



196 THE SOIL WINNER. 

Everywhere we noticed the marks of improvement, the 
advance of a better civilization among the mountains. 
Churches were going up along the road, new fields opened 
and new houses built — of better construction than the old log 
cabins. Then we knew that the best educator of a people is 
the Christian religion. 

We reached Hazel Green, the gem of the mountain 
towns, about dark. This beautiful village lies in a great 
basin on the upper Red river, with a rim of green mountains 
around it — like a picture frame. Trie good people were anx- 
iously awaiting our coming, and the Xicholasville bell sum- 
moned a full house to heir brother Mickel, their former pas- 
tor, preach a good sermon. Everybody here loves him for 
his own sake and his faithful work among them. 

A few years ago there was only an unfinished church in 
this pretty town : now it has three handsome and comfortable 
churches. Then there were only about three Presbyterians 
in the county, now. some fifty, with a good organization, and 
some most devoted members. This little vine owes very 
much to the faithful efforts and earnest prayers of Col. Robert 
Samuel and his devoted wife On her invitation I first visi- 
ted this field, and organized this church in the school house. 
God will reward them. 

MORGAN COUNTY. 

On Saturday I preached morning and evening, and five 
women united with our church after the evening service. 
Brother Mickael remained to preach over the Sabbath, and I 
went on to Bethsalem in Morgan county, where I preached 
on the Sabbath to a congregation too large for the church, 
so we held the services in God's first temple, beneath the 
spreading branches of a beautiful grove. Two years ago we 



THE CHURCH IN THE WILDERNESS. 197 

had no church here, and no members. Now we have a large 
comfortable church and about fifty members. The old log 
house without doors, windows, seats, or ceiling, in which we 
organized the church, is now replaced by a handsome frame 
building, capable of seating some three hundred people, built, 
owned and occupied harmoniously by the Baptists, Reformers 
and Presbyterians. " Behold how good and how pleasant a 
thing it is for brethren to dwell together in unity." 

Brother Mickel came out on Monday, and ihe people 
petitioned for three services a day. So we preached at 10 a. 
m., 3 p. m. and 7 p. m., and scores of them walked (riding is 
a luxury to many up here) every service and carried their 
babies. 

How I pity those poor brethren who never enjoy such a 
privilege of feeding the hungry. 

It is no trouble to feed those who are not afflicted with a 
kind of spiritual dyspepsia. Their digestion is unimpaired, 
and they rejoice in the strong meat of Christian doctrine. 
These mountain people make religion a matter of business 
instead of a recreation as so many do. 

BREATHITT COUNTY. 

On Wednesday we had to leave in order to meet our ap- 
pointment in Breathitt county. Besides brother Mickel, the 
former faithful pastor of these churches, we had with us his 
earnest co-worker, Rev. James M. Little — born and reared 
among these mountains, and whose services have been in- 
valuable to our cause. He says he was a Presbyterian long 
before he ever saw one, or heard a sermon by a Presbyterian 
preacher. Learned to be one by reading the Bible. I need 
not say he is a good one. 

We crossed the mountain dividing the waters of the Red 



198 THE SOUL WINNER. 

river from the Upper Kentucky and rode down the Frozen 
stream to the North Fork of Kentucky river where Mr. Mic- 
kel preached at night in the little school house on White Oak, 
to a little company, by three little lamps without chimneys. 
Few men could preach such a sermon by electric light. 

The night was dark, the roads rough, the mountains 
high, so we appointed both services for daylight, 10 a. m. 
and 4 p. m. Word having gone out of our arrival, the house 
was filled with an eager anxious congregation, hungry for the 
bread of life, many of whom walked for miles to church, A 
year or two ago there were only one or two Presbyterians in 
this county ; now we have a church of some seventy mem- 
bers, with fine officers and a good sum made up to build a 
house of worship. 

This is the "church in the Wilderness," within the dio- 
cese of brother Cooper, who is holding a meeting on the Mid- 
dle Fork of Kentucky river, preparatory to our coming. 
These "wilderness'' people, and, indeed, all these "inhabitants 
of the rocks," remember your visit to them with grateful 
hearts, and pray for your return. 

MIDDLE FORK. 

Leaving brothers Mickel and James Little to continue 
the meeting, I left on Saturday to join brothers Cooper and 
J. B. DeVault on the Middle Fork. 

The road, a most rugged one, lay across the North Fork 
of the Kentucky river, through Miller's Gap, and up War 
Creek, by the old Indian battle ground. I stopped for din- 
ner at one of our faithful elders, Theophilus Cundiff's, and 
preached to the District Methodist Conference, then in session 
at his house. Here I received a nice present of the skin of a 
rattlesnake 14 years old, which was killed under Mr. Fri- 



THE CHURCH IN THE WILDERNESS. 199 

ley's dinner table, after the whole family had dined. God 
sealed his venemous mouth until they were all out of danger. 
Let us all trust God, and not forget to look under the table 
when travelling in the wilderness. 



EVANGELISTIC TOUR THROUGH THE MOUN- 
TAINS OF KENTUCKY. 



It was dark when I reached the new church on the Mid- 
dle Fork of the Kentucky river, and brother J. B. DeVault 
was preaching a good sermon to an attentive little congrega- 
tion, seated on rough boards. 

I thank God for what my eyes beheld — the first church 
building on a river over one hundred miles long, in a county 
settled over one hundred years ago. So much for our 
Synod's evangelistic work. 

One year ago there was but one Presbyterian on this 
river. Now this church numbers one hundred and seventeen 
members. One year ago I organized this church out of 
doors for want of a better place. Now we are worshipping 
in a large, comfortable and substantial frame building, capa- 
ble of seating three hundred people. Though yet unfinished 
it afforded comfortable quarters for our meeting. The church 
is built in elder Jesse Spicer's front yard, donated by this 
liberal servant of God, besides a generous sum of money. It 
stands on a beautiful eminence, a high promontory, overlook- 
ing a great bend in the river, and in the center of a large 
population. The lumber used in the construction was 
brought on push boats some forty miles, because there are no 



200 THE SOUL WINNER. 

saw mills on this river, except the ancient whip-saw run by 
two strong men. This church owes much to dear Brother 
Wm. B. Cooper and I is faithful co-worker James M. Little, 
who supply this field with preaching. 

The morrow was the Sabbath, and a great congregation 
filled the church, many coming as far as ten or fifteen miles 
over mountain roads. Five persons, all adults, joined the 
church after the sermon, on profession of faith. The services 
were continued until Thursday morning, Brothers Cooper 
and DeVault rendering valuable assistance. 

On Monday we had a big rain storm. As half the top 
of the church was uncovered, and no windows in, nor doors, 
the congregation got a good wetting. But they stood their 
ground bravely and took the rain rather than miss the ser- 
mon. God blesses such people. Brother Cooper held an 
umbrella over me while I preached At the close of the 
service three persons came forward and accepted Christ, 
one an old man of seventy years. As the nights were so dark 
and the roads dangerously bad in places we held two services 
by day light : at 10 a. m. and 4 p. m. A great majority of 
the people walked, many of them several miles, and most of 
them attended both services. All business except the greatest 
business was suspended and the people came to hear and 
believe God. God honored their faith and devotion, and 
gave them a great blessing. 

On Wednesday morning, -after the seivice, twenty-three 
persons came forward to accept Christ, many of them aged 
people, twenty of whom I baptized, having never before be- 
longed to any church. It was a Pentecost indeed, and 
worth all the privations and hardships endured to share it 
and enjoy it. It was a rich compensation of God's love and 



FROM THE MIDDLE FORK. 201 

mercy bestowed on His poor mountain children, who had so 
faithfully worked for his glory. That day repaid amply all 
they had done and suffered in His blessed cause. Oh ! that 
God would visit his older and richer churches with a portion 
of their zeal and their reward. 

At the evening service, nine more united with the 
church, making thirty-two on that day. Engagements at 
Jackson compelled me to leave on Thursday morning, greatly 
to my regret. Fifty-six persons, almost all adults, had united 
with the church since Sunday, in four days. To God be all 
the glory. 

On our way to Jackson, Thursday morning, at the 
urgent request of the people, we stopped and preached at 
9 o'clock, in the little vacant log house on the head of 
Puncheon Camp creek. The house was literally packed, in- 
side and outside, most of the men standing around the door. 

After the sermon eighteen persons, some of them aged 
people and some of them bright children, came forward to 
profess their faith in Christ, most of whom were there baptized 
and added to the Middle Fork church. This extraordinary 
result was due largely to the faithful efforts of a poor and 
humble mountain boy, Lewis G. Hensley, who, for nearly a 
year, has, almost unaided, conducted a Sabbath school in 
this neighborhood — teaching sometimes one hundred pupils, 
many of them how to read, all of them how to love and 
serve God. These additions gave the church at Middle Fork 
one hundred and ninety members before it is a year old. 

Truly, God's arm is not shortened, nor his ear heavy. 
His word is still true. "Every one that asketh receiveth." 
These people believe God and ''all things are possible 
to him that believeth." It is a good church, composed of 



202 THE SOUL WINNER. 

the best people in the country, who love their church and 
" show their faith by their works." Their elder rode about 
one hundred miles on horseback to represent his church in 
the last meeting of Presbytery, while some could not come 
twenty on the cars. 

On Thursday night I had the pleasure of preaching the 
opening sermon before the "Yearly Meeting" of our 
churches in the mountains, which met in the new and hand- 
some church at Jackson. Nearly all the teachers of the 
common schools of the county, some sixty or more, were 
present. The Teachers' Institute had been in progress dur- 
ing the week, and had enjoyed the preaching of Brother 
Mickel, who came on Saturday from the church on the 
Frozen. 

This is Bro. Little's home church, and is a noble tribute 
to God's liberal children throughout Kentucky, who have 
contributed to its erection. It is the first church building of 
any kind ever erected in this old county seat, and the first 
frame church ever built in this large and populous county. 
We organized this church two years ago, in the old court 
house. We began without a single member, the church has 
now over one hundred members. Then there were only two or 
three Presbyterians in the county, now there are nearly four 
hundred, with two large churches already built and work 
begun on the third. 

The Presbyterians in Kentucky can here see the present 
result of their labor and liberality. God and eternity alone 
can measure the ultimate results. 

Our yearly Meeting, which is a conference of brethren 
for Christian communion and discussion of vital practical 
questions of Christian life, continued until Sabbath. Quite 



FROM THE MIDDLE FORK. 203 

a number of brethren, some from distant churches, were 
present and took part in the discussions. A notice of this 
has already appeared in the Observer. Duties at home and 
the meeting of the Presbytery compelled me to leave on Satur- 
day, much to my regret. I could only wish many, yea, all 
our weary brethren, overworked in the study and pastorate, 
could have shared with us the recreation, the privations, the 
privileges, the blessings of this mountain tour. The people 
would have been benefitted, God glorified, their bodies in- 
vigorated, and their souls refreshed. I preached every day, 
and came home stronger, happier and I hope better. Try 
it, dear brother. 



204 THE SOUL WINNER. 



BEAR CREEK. 

That name is neither euphonious nor classical, but it is 
more. It is immortal. Like the annals of the poor its story 
is short and simple. 

One mild September afternoon our horses carried us 
over a mountain, through an unbroken wilderness to the head 
of Bear Creek. Its waters divide "Bloody Breathitt." and 
classic Lee counties, Kentucky. Between wooded moun- 
tains it winds its narrow way to the middle fork of the Ken- 
tucky river, into which it empties its muddy waters several 
miles above the junction of the three rivers. 

It lies in the "regions beyond;" beyond the railroads 
and turnpikes ; beyond the blue grass and the brick houses; 
beyond the churches and the Sabbath schools. 

The only road up Bear Creek is a devious path, probably 
not so good as when Daniel Boone killed bears and buffalos 
and Indians there a hundred years ago. The little "patches" 
of the settlers have pushed the path out of the narrow val- 
ley up on the mountain side in many places. But Bear 
Creek is in "the world" — the world into which we are sent. 
It is peopled with "creatures" — the creatures to whom we 
are sent to "preach the gospel." 

The old log school house was crowded with people, in- 
side and out, and it was as easy to preach to those outside as 
inside. Indeed, there was not much difference between the 
two sides. 

They had no church. Few of them had ever seen one. 
They had no preacher. Few of them ever passed that way. 



BEAR CREEK. 205 

The people did not know very much; but they knew they 
were sinners and needed a Saviour; knew they must die, and 
wanted a better home than the cabins on Bear Creek. So I 
tried to tell them of both. It was not much trouble. I did 
not have to read it. The text was the healing of the leper 
(Mark I). It taught the hard doctrines of Calvinism, of our 
sin and ruin, and the glorious gospel of healing and life. 
They felt the disease, and saw the Great Physician, and fol- 
lowed the leper to His feet — sixteen of them. 

It was Pentecost on Bear Creek. Old men and women, 
young men and maidens, and little children, sought His life- 
giving touch, and, I believe, received it. I baptized twelve 
of them; some of them were well stricken in years. There 
was joy on Bear Creek and in Heaven that night. 

An humble log cabin near by furnished us shelter until 
next day. It was the home of two women, both of whose 
husbands had been murdered. Their house had only one 
room, but their hearts were four stories high. 

At ten o'clock the next morning, and at four in the after- 
noon, I preached to the schoolhouse full of eager souls. Ten 
more gladly received Christ and were baptised. These, with 
twenty-three others, were duly organized into a Presbyterian 
church — the first Presbyterian church ever in Lee county. 
Two excellent men were made elders and one a deacon. 
They then gave enough of their little store to build a nice 
church, one man giving all the lumber for the house. One 
young man offered himself for the ministry of God's free 
grace. All praised God for his abounding mercy. Faithful 
James Little will preach the gospel to them regularly, and 
their church will be called the "Twin Creek Church," and 
will be built on thit stream as more convenient for all the 



THE SOUL WINNER. 

congregation. It will be the first church built in all that re- 

;:::: ;..-. i ::.t J::;: ?:z-:y.z:.-.y. ir.uror. ii 1ft ::ur.:v. 

This is part of the story of Bear Creek. The rest you 
will hear in heaven. 



FROM HAZARD. 



To Me Christian Observer: — 

August 25, 1892. 

A word from these "unexplored regions* 7 may not be 
unwelcome to the Observer nor unwholsome to your reader- 

It may serve the purpose of teaching one- half the world 
how the other half lives. 

On the twenty-third of August I left my home for a visit 
to this place which is notorious in the blocdy annals of the 
mountains as the capital of Perry county, and the seat of the 
desperate French-Eversole war. 

- t 1 :: ..-:;,- Union railroad brought me to Jackson, 
the county seat of Breathitt county, one hundred miles south- 
east of Lexington. But a few years ago it took three da s" 
hard riding to make this trip over the mountains. 

Jackson is a demonstration of the gospel. Xo infidel 
can answer her argument When I first visited the place some 
few years ago, there was not a church in the town or county. 
It was the scene of violence, and profanity, and drunkenr. 7 
and murder. An army of soldiers could not keep the peace. 
To-day there is not a more orderly, peaceable, prosperpus 



FROM HAZARD. 207 

town in the State. The gospel did it. Now they have 
good churches, good preachers, teachers, homes, business 
houses, and a prosperous college with seven teachers. 

It may not be amiss to add that the evangelistic work of 
the Presbyterian church wrought this change by the blessing 
of God. 

Here at Jackson I found our young and energetic 
brother, Rev. W. 0. Shoemaker, in charge of the church 
work, Dr. E. P. Mickel having been transferred to the col- 
lege, for which he possesses rare qualifications. 

But I.must hasten on to Hazard. After one brief night 
at the new, handsome '-Riverside Hotel" at Jackson (that 
hotel followed the gospel), a clever brother furnished me 
a saddle horse for the long overland journey. I pre- 
ferred a better way, but was glad not to have to walk. The 
distance to Hazard is thirty-eight miles — mountain miles. 
There is a big difference between mountain miles and ordin. 
ary miles, and all the difference is in favor of the mountain 
kind. 

I started at 6 A. m., for I had some experience in their 
length. Ten miles up the beautiful Kentucky river, between 
her palisades of paw-paws, and her colonnades of wild 
cucumber or vvahoos, under the cool shadow of the mountains, 
was a delight. 

I hardly saw a soul, save a few bare-footed, bare-headed 
children going to school with dinner baskets (but no books), 
filled with hard apples and "cowcumbers," as they called 
them. They were bright and happy, and not bothered with 
''much learning." 

Ten miles above Jackson I came to the mouth of 
Troublesome, a large tributary of the river. Up Trouble- 



208 THE SOUL WINNER. 

some one mile my road turned up the Lost Creek, which is 
followed with much tribulation for nineteen miles. 

I could not but think that all lost creeks and roads emp- 
tied into Troublesome. This is not the only time I got to 
Troublesome by the Lost Creek route. 

I stopped at the postoffice at the mouth of Lost Creek 
to write a postal home to cheer them with the news of my 
safe arrival on Troublesome. There I met a brave Virginia 
Methodist preacher, McClure, who, on the Saturday before, 
preached in Squire Friley's blacksmith shop and four souls 
received Christ. I thought that shop was doing better serv- 
ice than some big. fine churches I knew. 

Just as I entered the mouth of Lost Creek I met an old 
friend, Judge Strong, who knew me when a youth in the 
army, and greeted me with the remark that he "had not seen 
me since we slept on a rail." Such a bed is apt to make an 
impression on a man. 

The Judge said, "Troublesome was fifty- two miles long, 
and Lost Creek nineteen, and they are full of sinners to the 
head, and no church on either." 

Let the Blue Grass people "look en this picture, then 
on that." 

Several miles up the Lost Creek I stopped at a clever 
man's house to get my horse fed and a "bite" for myself. 
These mountain people are hospitable to a fault, and Gran. 
Noble was no exception. Fifteen cents is all he would take 
for man and beast, and a big musk melon thrown in. He 
and Mrs. Noble had eleven children, most of them grown, 
all well and hearty, and never had a doctor. This is a good 
place for health. 



FROM HAZARD. 209 

Here I met Mr. Nipper, generally called Mr. Napper, but 
he said his name was Napier. See how we get our names. 
Adam would not know his children — by name. 

I travelled with Mr. Nipper-Napper up to the mouth of 
Ten Mile, and all the rest of my long journey alone with 
God and the mountains. Glorious company! We would all 
be better if we had such company oftener. What more ele- 
vating, ennobling, purifying, than the great mountains. And 
God! His company makes heaven. That was a glorious 
ride in such company. 

The shadows of the great mountains were falling over 
the valleys when I crossed the mountain from Lost Creek to 
Lot's Creek and still Hazard was miles away. 

Inquiries from the natives seemed to indicate that Haz- 
ard was travelling about as fast as I was. Only one bright 
youth of some sixteen summers, gave me comfort by assur- 
ing me that Hazard was "a right smart piece off." I found 
his answer correct, as I rode into the little mountain tewn at 
seven p. m., about as weary as my horse. 

Hazard's size is entirely out of proportion to its reputa- 
tion. No town of its size in the state has such a name. It 
is the synonym of violence and bloodshed. It is the seat of 
the French -Eversole war, in which some seventeen men were 
killed, and for four years all law was abolished. And, 
although the only town in Perry county, and the county seat, 
it consists of only a court house, jail, four stores and seven- 
teen families. It lies in a narrow valley, surrounded by 
mountains, on the north fork of the Kentucky river. 

There is no church or school house here, and never was. 
War was inevitable. Here I am trying to preach the gospel 
in the court house, and teach them a better way. Pray 
for us, 



210 THE SOUL WINNER. 



FROM THE REGIONS BEYOND. 



ON THE TROUBLESOME. 



September 7, 1892. 

I am so far out of the world I have never heard whether 
my former letter ever reached you (or the public)/ or 
not, but I will presume upon your goodness and give you 
another turn. 

I am glad to have more and better news than I had be- 
fore. On my arrival at Hazard, I soon found the only Pres- 
byterian in the county and felt a little more at home. I also 
soon found two of our foreign missionaries, Brothers Mickel 
and Mott Sawyers. (The natives call us all " foreigners.") 
Bro. Mickel was teaching the County Teachers' Institute, 
and preaching between times. Bro. Sawyers had spent most 
of the summer here in the service of our Evangelistic Com- 
mittee. He is the right man in the right place ; earnest, 
energetic, sensible, devoted and not afraid of things, and 
knows everybody by name and where they live. 

Though very weary after my long ride from Jackson, I 
preached that night in the court house. There was no where 
else to preach, for though the town and county art some 
seventy years old, there is neither church nor school house 
here and never was. No wonder it has such a bloody record 
of seven murders in one year, and seventeen in four years, 
and forty-six orphan children as the result of " the war " be- 
tween the factions, 



FEOM THE TROUBLESOME. 211 

The congregation was not very large, for the town has 
only some seventeen families, and some of them do not go to 
church, and some are afraid to go at night. The prospect 
was about as cheerless, I thought, as Noah's experience be- 
fore the flood. And when Bro. Mickel left us on Friday, 
only hope remained, and that a faint one. People unac- 
quainted with such work have no conception of its difficulties. 
The people generally have no use for any religion, and less 
for our kind. 

But God's word "stands sure," and we preached and 
pleaded His promises. He pitied and forgave our unbelief, 
and blessed His word. In one week we succeeded in organiz- 
ing a Presbyterian church of thirty-eight members, with three 
elders and one deacon, and raised a subscription of over six 
hundred dollars to build a church. To God be all the glory, 
It was manifestly His work. 

Judge Combs, the leading citizen and principal owner of 
the town and country, became a member on profession, and 
was" made an elder. Dr. Wm. T. Wilson, the only original 
Presbyterian, was made another, and Jere. Mcintosh the 
third. John B. Eversole, whose father, a leading lawyer, 
was murdered during " the war," was made deacon. 

The notorious desperado, Tom Smith, who was confined 
in jail and under indictment for five murders, made a confes- 
sion, which bore every evidence of sincerity, and in the dark 
dungeon filled with deeply interested worshipers, I baptized 
him and his wife, and a fellow prisoner, Finley Summers, 
charged with shooting, with intent to kill, Judge Combs, 
the county School Superintendent. 

On Thursday morning I crossed the mountain beyond 
the river to Big Creek, where I preached until Saturday night, 



212 THE SOUL WINNER. 

in an open log school house to good congregations. Bro. 
Sawyers was always present, faithfully working in the 
vineyard. 

Many difficulties had to be overcome or submitted to — 
no one to help us, few seats except rough rails, lights without 
chimneys and few of them, primeval singing, and a small 
choir with two books. But God prefers to conquer by few 
and gave them the victory. Some twenty-three confessed 
Christ, and most of them joined the Presbyterian church and 
received baptism, giving our church at Hazard some sixty 
members. We could have organized a church on Big Creek, 
but thought best to defer it. We met some fine people there 
and their hospitality received another illustration. 

My good host had only one bed room, besides the 
kitchen, for his family and company, and he turned none 
away till there were seven of us people in one little room 
and no ventilation. 

On Monday I left Big Creek for the Troublesome, a 
large tributary of the Kentucky river. Bro. Sawyers pre- 
ceded me and preached there Sunday night. 

I passed through Hazard and was glad to find our people 
in earnest about beginning their church. Judge Combs 
gave the nicest site in town, overlooking the valley and the 
village. They expect to begin to build this week. The ladies 
were at work to raise money for an organ. There is not one 
in this county. Twelve more mountain miles, through a 
pouring rain, brought me to the waters of Troublesome. 

The so-called road from the head of Lot's creek to the 
mouth of Pigeon Roost, on Troublesome, is as bad as I ever 
remember and I have been travelling the road to Jordan a 
good while. The ascent to the summit of Pike's Peak is 



FROM THE TROUBLESOME. 213 

better, to my personal knowledge. To make matters worse 
my faithful horse lost a shoe and the only man near my road 
could not shoe a horse. He only shod oxen. Take the 
other road when you come this way. This route is too rough 
and too lonesome. For miles I saw no house or human. be- 
ing, even the birds had fled the desolation and left the wilder- 
ness voiceless. To a man who loves company it was awful 

The only thing I heard in miles was the rattle of a cow 
bell ; the only thing I saw was a lonesome log cabin, where 
the kitchen and dining room, family room, bed chamber, 
library and parlor, were all in one room, and that a little one. 

A score of bare-headed, bare-footed children coming 
from school, announced the approach of civilization, and ex- 
hibited the jewels of the Octavias of the hills. Their hills 
may be barren but their homes are not. The birds may have 
flown, but the children are left. 

This poor and sparsely settled county, where the people 
can only live along narrow valleys, has forty-seven school 
districts in it, and often one hundred children in a district. 
Here is the necessity and opportunity of the church and the 
Gospel. 

This whole country is practically without either. No 
churches or Sabbath schools, no competent preachers, for 
this great region full of souls. 

It made my heart sick to behold them now, and con. 
template them in the future, when their sorrowful years will 
outnumber the leaves in their vast, unbroken forests. Let 
the people of Kentucky be warned of their danger, and ad- 
monished of their duty to these perishing people. The 
curse of poverty and the desolation of sin are over them all. 
Without our help they must perish. 



214 THE SOUL WINNER. 

The evening brought me to the waters of the Trouble- 
some. This is a large stream, over fifty miles in length, and 
one of the largest tributaries of the Upper Kentucky river. 
It passes through Knott, Perry and Breathitt counties. In 
all its long course there is only one (unfinished) church on 
it, and that is at Hindman, the county seat of Knott county. 

I had not passed this way since a youth, when I fol- 
lowed the bold rider, John Morgan. What memories crowded 
upon my heart as I thought upon those vanished years ! 
How changed the times, and men, and me! Following 
Morgan then ; following Christ now ! A soldier of the Con- 
federacy then ; a soldier of the Cross, now ! Why should I 
complain of the march, bivouac, and the privations and the 
battle now, and endure it all so cheerfully then ! 

These were lessons from real life. And then, how dif- 
ferent the cause; how glorious the conflict; how certain the 
victory now ! A few more days on Troublesome and end- 
less years in Paradise ! 



THE IVY PATCH. 215 



THE IVY PATCH. 



BY REV. DR. E. O. GUERRANT. 



It is said that Agassiz could give a full history of an un- 
known fish, from a single scale, or paint the picture of a pre- 
historic Saurian from his track in a rock. 

Ivy Patch will answer for a scale or a track, from which 
the wise can estimate the character and size of the great work 
undertaken and accomplished by the Synod of Kentucky in 
its evangelistic work. 

Two years ago two lone horsemen might have been seen 
riding, single file, up a little mountain stream in the wilds of 
Eastern Kentueky. They were soaking wet from a big rain, 
from which they could find no protection. They were hunt- 
ing " the lost sheep " amid the fastnesses of the mountains. 
There were few houses, and they were small and humble. 
There was not & church in the county, and never had been 
one. They were evangelists of the Synod of Kentucky. A 
few of the hardy mountaineers forded the streams and crossed 
the hills to the little house of clever Matt. Bowman, on the 
head of Twin Creek. God came, too, over the mountains of 
our sins, and filled the place with his presence and power. 
Many souls were there born into His kingdom, who will one 
day stand on Mt. Zion. The generous mountaineer enter- 
tained nearly the whole congregation for two days, with bed 
and board, for the pouring rain prevented them from going 
home. The old log school house across the mountain, on the 
head of Bear Creek, furnished the nearest and only place of 



216 THE SOUL WINNER. 

public meeting. So with their little congregation, some few 
on horses, some on foot, and some carried in the arms, the 
evangelists crossed the mountain, through a primeval wilder- 
nerness, to the settlement on Bear Creek. The old school 
house gave them a generous welcome with wide open doors 
and windows, and fire place, and chinks, and cracks. 

It didn't hold the congregation, but they could hear as 
well outside as inside. Indeed, it was most outside. But 
God is "no respecter of persons," nor houses. And God 
came, and made that old log school house the very gate of 
heaven. 

The first sermon was made the power to reach sixteen 
souls, among them the aged and young, who rejoiced in such 
a God and such a gospel. They lifted up their voices and 
wept for joy. You would have thought it was a Methodist 
meeting instead of a Presbyterian. God gave them the vic- 
tory and they shouted at Bear Creek. God himself some- 
times goes up with a shout, and the Lord will come down 
with it, Paul says. So " the daughters of Jerusalem " shouted 
at Bear Creek, and the Presbyterian evangelists did not 
confine their joys, nor hamper the simple manners of the 
children of the hills. 

Shouting is not religion, but the religion that does not 
feel like shouting sometimes, needs mending badly. It isn't 
the Bear Creek kind, nor the Pentecostal kind. 

When the harvest on Bear Creek was gathered, the 
evangelists took up their congregation and crossed over to 
the Ivy Patch, a compmion of Bear Creek, which flows into 
the middle fork of the Kentucky river, in Lee county. Here 
there was not even a ventilated school house they could use, 
so the widow Parmer opened her heart and her double log 



THE IVY PATCH. 217 

cpbin to the strange preachers and the whole congregation. 
The same God who found Paul when he was lost in the 
stormy Adriatic, found His children on the Ivy Patch, and 
gave them many souls from the shipwreck of sin. Here the 
first Presbyterian church in Lee county, Kentucky, was or- 
ganized, with over forty members and three good officers. 
This is the beginning of the history of Ivy Patch. It will be 
finished in glory. 

This was two years ago. On the third Sabbath of July, 
1 89 1, a large congregation of earnest worshipers, many of 
whom walked miles in the rain, assembled in a new church 
on the Twin Creek, just over the hill from Ivy Patch. This 
is the Ivy Patch church, and was built here because of the 
junction of waters and ways. 

Two evangelists were present, with other faithful serv- 
ants, who labored in word and doctrine. It was a day of 
rejoicing and thanksgiving. God had again visited his peo- 
ple. He is the God of the hills, as well as the valleys. 

The new church was dedicated free of debt, five more 
officers elected and ordained, forty-eight new members added 
to the church, and God's name glorified, and His grace mag- 
nified. 

Two years ago, and there was not a Presbyterian church 
in Lee county, now there are three, and this is the first. Two 
years ago, and there was not a Presbyterian preacher in Lee 
county — there were five at the dedication of the Ivy Patch 
church. Two years ago there were not a dozen members of 
the Presbyterian church in Lee county, now there are two 
regular preachers, three churches organized, and some 125 
members. Rev. James M. Little is pastor of this church, a 
son of the soil, and every inch a man, and he is ably sup- 



218 THE SOUL WINNER. 

ported by as true and earnest a body of officers as rule any 
church in the land. 

In Rev. E. P. Mickel. and Rev. Alex. Henry, and Rev. 
A. P. Gregory, he has faithful and effective helpers in neigh- 
boring fields. 

This is a brief outline of the church organized on the 
Ivy Patch. It is only a sample. God has ever multiplied 
the tokens of his favor on this tt'ork. Xo other portion of 
His vineyard has enjoyed such signal displays of His divine 
approbation. 

If the Synod of Kentuckv had done nothing more than 
extend the kingdom of heaven into these mountain fastnesses, 
it has earned the gratitude of men, and reaped the favor of 
God. and deserves an humble place among the sons of the 
mighty, who battle for the Lord. To Him be all the glory. 



ON THE GRAPEVINE. 219 



ON THE GRAPEVINE. 



THE MOUNTAINS OF KENTUCKY. 



July, 1894. 

Dear Mr. Converse: — You may not get many letters 
from the mountains, so I thought I would write you one. 
Papa promised to take me with him the next time he went to 
the mountains to preach, so we started on the 10th of July, 
and at Lexington took the Kentucky Union railroad for the 
mountains. We went one hundred miles to Jackson, in 
Breathitt county. The road went up the Red river, where 
the big cliffs stand up on both sides of the road, hundreds of 
feet high. Many of the mountains have rocks on top like 
domes, bigger than a church. They were grand. The river 
was lined with beautiful flowers of ivy and laurel. 

I saw some men cutting oats with a big scythe, with fin- 
gers on it; papa said they were "cradling." That was curi- 
ous to me. One big tree was growing on the top of a big 
rock. About six o'clock in the evening we reached Jackson, 
on the north fork of the Kentucky river. It is a very nice 
town, and we have a church and college there, where they 
had none a few years ago. 

On Wednesday morning we started for the big moun- 
tains in Perry county. Mr. Chas. Little, papa's friend, went 
along with us, and took his niece, Miss Kate Patrick, to help 
sing. He had two buggies; we rode in one and they in the 
other. Papa brought a little Estey organ and we tied it on 
behind our wagon. 



220 THE SOUL WINNER. - 

We went up the Kentucky river ten miles to the mouth 
of Troublesome Creek. Here we got into trouble enough. 
We had to get out and help the wagon down the rocky stair- 
steps in the road. We went up Troublesome a mile, and then 
went up Lost Creek ten miles, and the man there said, there 
were ten thousand big saw logs in that creek. I never saw 
the like. The little houses all had martin boxes, but no yard 
nor shade. 

Down on Troublesome we saw some ladies bare- footed, 
and one old lady had shoes on but no stockings, and one had 
on a dress shorter than mine. I guess she must have been 
an old maid. 

The mountains were very steep, but had corn growing 
on their sides nearly to the top. They can't plow them up 
and down, but crossways. We saw coal mines all along the 
road, just sticking out of the mountains. Sometimes we rode 
over solid coal beds; and the biggest trees I ever saw grow 
along the creeks and rivers. They are awfully big. We saw 
a little boy who had only a shirt on, and most of the men 
were bare footed, but they were very clever. 

When we went ten miles up Lost Creek we turned up a 
creek called "Ten Mile" creek. Well, it was awful. I 
thought we had passed bad roads, but we were just begin- 
ning them. Three men went along to cut trees and roll logs 
and rocks out of the road. And such a road ! over bu rocks 
and logs and steep banks, and deep holes and around splash- 
dims. I thought our buggy would be smashed all to pieces. 
The horse pulled one trace in two, and a big rock broke a 
spoke out of the buggy. Sometimes we had to walk and 
climb. When we rode over the rocks we couldn't keep our 
hats on. Sometimes I bumped papa and sometimes he 



ON THE GRAPEVINE. 221 

bumped me. It was too funny. Papa got a man to lead the 
horse around a big tree on the mountain while he and another 
man held the buggy. The horse got strangled and the man 
cried out, "Here's a dead horse," and scared me nearly to 
death. But they got the horse up and we went on over a 
mountain to the Grapevine creek. Here we had a time get- 
ting down the mountain, the path was so steep and sideling. 
Mr. Little's horse went over the mountain side; he jerked 
him back and he fell down with the buggy on him. Papa 
and some men helped take him out, and then the buggy ran 
away down the mountain and broke the shaft. Then they all 
took our horse out and got the buggy down to the foot of the 
mountain by the hardest work. 

Papa said this was my vacation trip. I think it was. I 
never saw as much in my life. The day seemed a week 
long. The road down the Grapevine was no road at all. Mr. 
Little and papa had to walk and lead and roll the big logs 
out of the way. It took us five hours to go seven miles. We 
got to the mouth of Grapevine about dark — twenty-seven 
miles by the road we came, and about forty by the river, 
above Jackson. Papa had a friend living there named Dr. 
Wilson, but we could not get our buggies to his house so we 
crossed the river and stayed at Mr. Tom Johnston's. They 
are very clever people, indeed. Papa and Mr. Little went 
over the river and staid at Dr. Wilson's. 

Mr. Sawyers, our missionary, was there. Papa is preach- 
ing in the little schoolhouse on the bank of the river, and it 
is crowded at 10 A. m. and 4 p. m. Miss Kate Patrick and 
I play the little organ, the first one ever played in the county 
for worship. Emma Johnston has the only one in the county. 
The people are very clever and attentive, and most of them 



222 THE SOUL WINNER. 

walk to church. About twenty-five have joined, and Mr. 
Johnston was the first one, and one old man nearly seventy, 
and one real pretty little girl named Dora Duff. Mr. Johnston 
is a leading man in the country, and lives in the only brick 
house. 

We went swimming in the river one evening ; it was 
about a foot deep, and we had lots of fun. It is very cool 
and so quiet in these mountains. You can see but a little 
way. So many big trees and high mountains. Sun- 
day we are going to take dinner to church and have an all- 
day meeting. Next week we are going to Hazard, the only 
town in Perry ^county. They say the road up Campbell's 
Creek and down '"Forked-mouth" Creek is worse than Ten 
Mile and Grapevine. I pity it if it is. But I guess we will 
go it. Papa is going to preach on Big Creek next week. 
When you get tired and want a vacation, come to Grapevine 
and preach. The people will be glad to hear you. They 
are clever as they can be. Good-bye. 

Your little friend, 
Hazard, Ky. Grace Guerrrant. 



TO BIG CREEK. 223 



TO BIG CREEK. 



IN THE MOUNTAINS OF KENTUCKY, 



Jackson, Breathitt County, Ky., July 25, 1894. 
My last letter brought you to the mouth of the Grape- 
vine creek. Well, we had a big meeting there Sunday, from 
10 A. M. till 5 P. M., two hours for dinner. There was a 
crowd ; the school house was packed, and it was so hot that 
I could hardly get my breath. Papa preached morning and 
evening ; thirty -five joined, and he had to baptize most of 
them, as they had never been baptized. Some people had to 
stand out in the rain. Monday morning we bade all good- 
bye, and started to Big creek. The roads were worse and 
worse. One clever man went along to hold the buggy. We 
went up the Kentucky river, and then up Campbell's cretk 
and across an awful mountain to Forked Mouth Creek, 
O, me ! A bad boy would say it was " forked lightning." 
We got down it alive, by walking, and climbing, and leading, 
and holding the buggies. The mountains and rocks just 
covered up the road entirely. We passed a little school 
house, and all the children ran out to see the buggies ; they 
were curiosities to them. One little boy said he lived on a 
creek, but didn't know its name. He saw big rattlesnakes 
up there, too. One funny man w<as riding an ox, and had a 
bed quilt for a saddle, and bark for his girth. Another man 
had an ox geared up like a horse, and was ploughing him. 
One old lady was carrying her baby, and a little pig was fol- 
lowing her like a dog. Whe>n she stopped, it lay down at her 



224 THE SOUL WINNER. 

feet. One little house had a long pole put up in the yard and 
three bottles hung on its top for ornaments. There were no 
trees in the yard. One lady had a little naked tree full of 
egg shells, like a snow-ball bush. It was funny to me. 

Well, after a hard journey over mountains and some 
more creeks, we reached Big creek. Papa had been there 
before, and the good people came up the road to meet us. I 
never saw cleverer people, though they are not rich, nor 
proud. Kate and I stayed at Mr. Fields', up on Big creek, 
and Mr. LittJe and papa had to stay down at Mr. Wiley 
Couch's, as there was not room for us all at one house. Papa 
preached in the school house four days, and twenty-seven 
joined the church. He organized a church there. We met 
some nice girls at Big Creek. One of them told us she could 
sing twice as loud as we could, and I believe it. We went 
fishing, and caught some nice fish and ate them. The peo- 
ple were so clever, we enjoyed our visit there. The little 
deaf boy who joined the church before was there ; he is a 
smart boy, and can talk a little. He is going to the Institute 
at Danville. His name is Willie Fugate. 

On Friday evening we crossed the mountain and went 
to Hazird, the county seat. It is a little town of about one 
hundred people. It used to have a bad name, because so 
many people were killed there. It is better now. The 
Methodist church is not quite done, and ours is just begun. 
The river runs between the town and the mountains. They 
never had a church here before. Papa preached in the Court 
House. Many people came to church, and twenty-three 
joined. He preached in the jail one day and three poor 
prisoners joined. It was an awful place, and I felt sorry for 
them. The doors were iron bars, and big bolts and locks to 



TO BIG CKEEK. 225 

hold them safe. A mountain preacher came to church, and 
be had been shot in the ear by some bad men. They said he 
killed their hogs. A big freshet came down the river and 
carried away hundreds of big saw logs. They said a water- 
spout broke on a creek called " Kingdom Come." 

We walked up the river one day, an'd met two men car- 
rying ioo fishes, called red horses. They were very pretty. 
We climbed to the very top of a big mountain with Mr. Saw- 
yers, and he said we could see the Cumberland mountains 
away off. There were some Indian graves up there. The 
mountains were covered with trees broken down by the big 
snow in May. On Tuesday morning Papa preached at 
Hazard the last time, and we started, after dinner, to Jack- 
son, forty miles away, over the mountains. I forgot to 
say, Kate and I stayed at Mr. Davis' at Hazard, and they 
treated us so nicely. Papa and Mr. Little staid at Mr. 
Robert Combs'. They have no regular hotel at Hazard. 
Somebody burned the hotel up a year ago. 

We drove twenty miles Tuesday evening down the river, 
up Lot's creek, and down Lost creek to Mr. Watts', which we 
reached about dark. The road was pretty bad. We were 
almost turned over in Lost creek once in a big hole full of big 
rocks. Mr. Little's harness kept breaking until he tied it 
with wire. One clever old lady said I looked the " natur- 
alist." I do'nt know what she meant. May be she thought 
I favored Papa. When we played the organ they wondered 
why we worked our feet. They couldn't understand it. But 
they are clever as they can be, and one of them told Papa 
that they were poor, but their souls were worth as much as 
rich people's. We saw no churches, and met few preachers, 
and they were not educated. Mr. Sawyers and Mr. Shock- 



228 T K E S )U L W [ X X E R. 

ley are doing good work preaching to them at Hazard, and 
in the country. We got up at 4 o'clock this morning and 
started to Jackson at 6, and by hard driving reached here 
at 12. 

So our long journey over the mountains is ended, and we 
are alive. Papa will preach here to night, and to morrow we 
go 100 miles to Lexington, on the railroad, and home to 
dinaer. " There's no place like home." Good-bye. Your 
friend, Grace Guerrant. 

P. S. —I guess I will have to add a postscript. I must say 
that I could never have gotten along without Katie Patrick. 
She was so nice, and such good company, and played and 
sang so sweetly. She played every evening, and I played in 
the mornings. Papa says he could never have made this trip 
without Mr. Little ; he did everything to get us along safely. 
We a'-e now stopping at his nice " River Side " home at Jack- 
son. Well, I am glad I came. I never saw so much before. 
Papa says I will have " experience to sell." I think I will. 

Yours, 

Grace Guerrant. 



THE LUCKY THIRTEEN. 227 



THE LUCKY THIRTEEN. 



OR THE LADIES EXCURSION. 



They did not go to Niagara, or Old Point Comfort, or 
Detroit ; or for fun, or health, or fashion. 

This excursion party was composed of the Ladies' 
Working Society of the Wilmore church, Kentucky, and 
went to see and encourage and help their poor brethren in 
the mountains. Like Paul's party of old, they "took up 
their carriages " and went to worship in the humble temples 
of the mountaineers. Thirteen ladies going on an excursion 
without a single trunk, was a " wonder to behold." 

So they went with only such baggage as they could carry 
in their hands. It was the first, and so far as I know, the 
only excursion of the kind. They went over the new and 
beautiful route of the Kentucky Union R. R., from Lexing- 
ton, which penetrates the heart of the Kentucky mountains. 
They took a preacher along to be certain of having preaching. 
This was a new feature of excursion parties. 

Their first stop was at Stanton, the quiet, cosy capital of 
Powell county, in the beautiful valley of the Red river. Here 
Rev. Andrew Irvine presided over the first and only Presby- 
terian church ever built in the county, and it is yet in its 
infancy. Fie and his good people gave the excursionists a 
royal welcome — a sumptuous supper and a sermon in the 
little new church. Here the ladies spent a day nuking the 
acquaintance of their sisters and brethren, and enjoying the 



228 THE SOUL WINNER. 

sights of the pretty mountain village, and encouraging the 
little church with the assurance of brotherly love and 
sympathy. 

From Stanton they went up the romantic Red river, 
through one continuous canon of overhanging cliffs, and 
under a mountain to the Kentucky river, thence down the 
river to Beattyville, the county seat of Lee, on her seven 
hills, overlooking the three forks of the iiver. Here they 
arrived 'at 6 p. m. , and at 8 p. m. had another sermon 
from their preacher, in the court house. Rev. Alexander 
Henry, the pastor of the first Presbyterian church in the city, 
received them most cordially, with his people and entertained 
them until the next evening. During the day they saw the 
sights of the Gate City of the mountains, visited many of the 
church members, enjoyed their Christian hospitality, rejoiced 
with them over their new church being built. At 4 p. m. 
they resumed their journey by boat and rail to Athol, on the 
border of " Bloody Breathitt " — no longer bloody, but blessed 
with the blood bought salvation of Jesus. Here they spent 
the Sabbath, most of it, in the little new church, the first 
Presbyterian church ever built in Lee county, and which they 
had helped to build with their needles. 

At 11 a, m. their preacher preached the dedication ser- 
mon. The house was filled with eager listeners, most all of 
whom had walked for miles through the rain and mud. 

There was not a wheeled vehicle at the church, and but 
few horses. The earnest people prized the Gospel enough to 
walk many miles to hear it. And they were not tired out 
with the sermon, but spread a bountiful dinner, fed all the 
multitude, and listened to another sermon from Bro. Mickel, 
and the election and ordination of some new officers. 



THE LUCKY THIRTEEN. 229 

The excursionists enlarged their liberality and paid off 
the debt on the little church — and laid up more treasures in 
heaven — and rejoiced that the "poor have the Gospel 
preached to them." Probably they never spent a more 
pleasant or profitable day than that under the shadow of the 
mountains, in the little church on the Twin Creek. 

You don't wonder that " God came down to see," and 
was so pleased that he added forty-eight souls to the church 
that week, and forty-eight jewels to the Redeemer's crown, 
and forty-eight reasons for rejoicing on earth and in heaven. 

After thanking God for what they had seen and felt of 
his abounding goodness, and learning something of the great 
needs of their poor brethren in the mountains, and being 
watered themselves, while watering other thirsty spirits, the 
ladies went on to Jackson, the growing capital of Breathitt 
county. 

They reached the little mountain city about 7 p. m., 
and at 8 o'clock all went to church again, where their 
preacher preached in the Presbyterian church to a crowded 
house, the first church ever built in the town or county, now 
with plenty of company, and hundreds of earnest Presby- 
terians where there were none. 

The good people of Jackson (and there are none better) 
received them in their homes and hearts, showed them their 
handsome court house, their new Presbyterian college, (the 
first college in the mountains of Kentucky) and their many 
commodious stores and comfortable homes. 

So ended the excursion of the happy thirteen, the first 
Gospel excursion to the poor brethren in the mountains. It 
would be difficult to tell whether they received or commun- 



230 THE SOUL WINNER. 

icated the greater good. God blesses both the giver and the 
receiver. 

To Brothers James M. Little, E. P. Mickel, A. P- 
Gregory, J. J.Dickey, Alex. Henry and Andrew Irvine and 
their generous and hospitable people, both Presbyterians and 
others, they will ever be grateful for their great kindness. 
Thirteen warm hearts and happy homes in the " blue grass " 
extend to them all a cordial Kentucky Christian welcome. 

" God be with you till we meet again." 



PUNCHEON CAMP. 



Jesus made manj humble names immortal. I was 
prjsent when he touched Puncheon Cimp and eternalized 
this little mountain stream, in the annals of heaven. It was 
on this wise : 

Once on a preaching tour through the mountains, an hum- 
ble unlettered young man joined the church. Among a hundred 
others he made no impression on me, unless it was by his 
homeliness. He was so ill-favored that one would not forget 
him ; though that would not recommend him to a very favor- 
able consideration. On a subsequent visit, he met me at the 
church on the Middle Fork of the Kentucky river, and urged 
me to visit his Sunday-school on Puncheon Camp. I was 
astonished that he had a Sunday-school anywhere, especially 
on Puncheon Camp. 

It was several miles from where he worked, (as a hired 
hand) among a sparsely settled people, in a narrow valley 
between big mountains. I hid no spire time to visit his 



PUNCHEON CAMP. 231 

school, but he urged so persistently I promised to stop on the 
Puncheon Camp at 9 o'clock Thursday morning on my way 
to Jackson, and preach to his Sunday-school. It was my 
only chance. I could hardly believe that a Sunday-school 
could be gathered at 9 o'clock on a week day, out of those wild, 
rough mountains. I did not know the man. It was blazing 
hot I came near having a sun stroke as I crossed the 
mountain at the head of Puncheon Camp, though I started 
early. By 9 o'clock I came in sight of the old deserted Gab- 
bard house, where the Sunday-school was taught. There 
was no other place to teach on that mountain creek. Imagine 
my astonishment when I saw an anxious crowd of men, 
women and children filling the house, porch and yard at 9 
o'clock in the morning. They had climbed the mountains, 
and crossed the streams on foot, to hear the Gospel. 

My friend was there and made a place big enough for me 
to stand in a crowd that filled every inch of space both inside 
and outside the house. His equipment for the Sabbath- 
school consisted of one small copy of Gospel Hymns (" words 
only ") and a small ten cent Testament. Out of these he 
taught the Puncheon Campers to sing and love Jesus. He 
led the singing and I preached. It was no trouble. A man 
couldn't help preach then and there. A hundred earnest, 
eager, hungry people sitting on the floor and porches of a 
mountain cabin, would make the dumb speak, and the stones 
cry out if others were silent. 

The poor untutored lad who had spelled out the story of 
Jesus love to the simple mountain folk, had sowed the seed 
of the Kingdom, I watered it, and God "gave the increase." 
I don't remember the sermon, but I do remember that when 
I.w.is done, eighteen souls, some stricken in years, some in 



232 THE SOUL WINNER. 

the dew of youth, came forward to say they believed on 
Jesus and rejoiced in a new found hope of everlasting life. 

It was not far from there to Heaven that day, for God 
makes Heaven and He was there. His finger touched their 
eyes, and they wept tears of penitential grief; touched their 
hearts, and they opened them to the foot-steps of the King; 
touched their lips, and they " rejoiced with joy unspeakable 
and full of glory." Jesus immortalized Puncheon Camp 
with His presence that day, and enrolled its name among 
the trophies of His grace. 

The humble name of Lewis Hensley may never pass the 
narrow horizon of his mountain home, but it is known and 
honored in Heaven, and will outlast and outshine the names 
of all earth's conquerors who never knew and loved the lowly 
Nazarene. 

He was a soul winner. 



FROM THE QUICKSAND. 233 



FROM THE QUICKSAND. 



IN THE MOUNTAINS OF KENTUCKY. 



Mouth of Hunting Creek, On the Quicksand Fork 
of Kentucky River, August 5, 1895. 

Dear Observer: — It has probably been some time since 
you had a letter from this neighborhood. And as all the 
world's akin, I will tell you something about your kinfolk on 
the Quicksand. 

On Tuesday, July 23rd, I started to these wild moun- 
tains to try and help them to a better country, even a 
heavenly. This Quicksand river is seventy-five miles long, 
and not a church building on it, one postoffice, I believe, and 
not a Presbyterian. I brought a large tent along to preach un- 
der, and a little organ to do the singing. Brother Bartlett Con. 
verse's little daughter, Ellen, and my own little Annie came 
along to help the organ. 

Soon after leaving Lexington it began to rain, and poured 
down all the hundred miles to Jackson, in "Bloody Breathitt' 
county, on the upper Kentucky river. We expected to leave 
Jackson early Wednesday morning for the Quicksand, but it 
rained all day. Did you ever see it rain in the mountains ? 
It does it so easily, and so naturally, and so persistently. It 
just rained, and rained, and rained until dinner, and then 
rained and rained until dark, and we just waited and wished 
and wondered if it would ever quit. It was Wednesday, and 
Brother Shewmaker's prayer meeting runs '-rain or shine/' 
and at 8 p. m. a big congregation waded to our church, and 
I preached with pleasure to such people. 



234 THE SOUL WINNER. 

It rained itself cut that night, and next morning we all 
started for the Quicksand in a two-horse jolt wagon drawn 
by two big mules. It was filled with the big tent and little 
organ and the happy girls, and two young men, Harry Cock- 
erham and Elias Moore, fine mountain boys, who expect 
to be preachers and go along to help. With the baggage and 
preacher and driver a pretty good load for an ugly bad road. 

THE ROAD AND THE COUNTY. 

Our destination was up the river, but we had to go down 
it to go up. These mountain roads are sometimes past find- 
ing out. So we went down the river to the mouth of Miller's 
Creek and into its mouth and came out at its head on a. big 
rocky mountain that jolted us all out of the wagon. Over 
the mountain we fell on the head of Roark's branch and went 
down to its mouth at the Quicksand river, now swollen and 
rapid and filled with floating sawlogs and rafts and flat boats. 

We went up the Quicksand to the mouth of Hounshell's 
branch and up to its head over another awful mountain road 
— after we had eaten a cold lunch to give us strength for the 
health lift. Over this mountain we fell on the Meat Scaffold, 
a peculiar creek, which led us back to the Quicksand again. 
Then up the Quicksand, over another little mountain, we 
found our destination at the mouth of Hunting Creek. And 
here we are, with three little houses and two little stores and 
eleven little children, not counting lots of little pigs, etc., 
but not one Presbyterian in all the land. 

The little houses are "scrouged in" between the foot of 
the steep mountain and the bank of the rapid river. It is 
out of the house into the road, and out of the road into the 
river. So the children must either climb or swim or have no 



FROM THE QUICKSAND. 23 5 

fun. There was another room in town, but a big rock rolled 
down the mountain and knocked it out. 

I forgot to mention the little school.house which stands, 
one foot on land and one on water. But a man had rented it for 
a saloon for apple brandy. (Unfortunately there is a big 
crop of apples here this summer.) But the enterprising peo- 
ple, not to be outdone, opened up the school in a coal shed, 
and here Miss Martha Smith teaches the urchins of the Quick- 
sand ; and she does it well, if it is in a coal house six by 
twelve. 

We reached here about 3 p. m., and at once set to work 
to pitch the big tent. With the help of some clever moun- 
tain boys and men we got it up by dark on the only level spot 
big enough near here. It stands on a rocky table, at the foot 
of the mountain, fifty feet above the stream,' surrounded by 
big ancient beech and oak trees — a* place known as ; ' Beech 
Fiat," where the Quicksanders cast their Democratic and 
other votes. Clever Nathan Sallee, the storekeeper, opened 
his heart and his house and gave us a genuine Kentucky 
mountain welcome — and there is no warmer or bigger this 
side of heaven. And here the little girls and I are staying, 
thankful for a place with such good people — richer in grace 
than goods, and with hearts bigger 'than their house. The 
boys are equally happy in the home of Charley Minnix, half 
a mile down the stream. 

You don't know what memories stir an old soldier's 
heart when I remember that thirty-three years ago a boy rode 
down this same wild river road on his way to the Southern 
army. And how the sad recollection of those vanished years 
is deepened by the cause that was lost, and the lives that 
have perished. Only one of my co npanions on th.it long 



236 THE SOUL WINNER. 

journey lives to remember the Hunting Creek and the Quick- 
sand and the Troublesome. May we not hope they have 
pitched their tents forever beyond the Quicksands and 
Troublesomes where we are camping to-day ? 

This country has changed much fur the better since then-. 
It has been but a few years since the Sallees had to take 
refuge in the mountains from violent men. The "old lady" 
told me she had seen thirty men in one big fight here. Tise 
hanging of "bad Tom" Smith at Jackson last month has 
helped things considerably. He had murdered seven men, 
and his execution will have a salutary effect. I preached to 
him at Hazard, two years ago, and he promised to do better, 
but forgot his promise and professions when he got out of 
jail. Death bed repentances are not to be relied on. 

On Friday morning we began our meeting. " Old 
Uncle Jimmie " Williams sat on the front plank, and seconded 
my remarks, and sometimes added a few of his own. As 
" Uncle Jimmie " was an old orthodox hardshell Baptist, we 
got along without breaking up the meeting. At 2:30 P. M., 
I preached again, and so every day since, for ten days — at 10 
A. M. and 2:30 P M. The bad roads, the long ways, some 
bad folks and rattlesnakes, which travel at night, make the 
day services preferable. 

Though the roads were bad and the narrow valleys thinly- 
settled, the people came in goodly numbers during the week, 
and crowded the big tabernacle on Sunday, with lots of babies 
and dogs to spare. 

The services began at 10 A. M., sometimes earlier, and 
continued until 4 P. M., generally, with a big recess for 
dinner. The patience of these people was as wonderful as 
the perseverance of the preacher, bat tliey came to learn, and 



FROM THE QUICKSAND. 237 

he was sent to teach, and both loved their business. On 
Saturday the services continued from 10 A. M. till 5 P. M., 
and none left or complained. And many had nothing to eat 
from early breakfast to a late supper. Such people deserve 
better treatment than they get. 

It is proper to say the preacher did not speak from to 
A. M. till 5 P. M., for much time was given to prayer and 
singing, and examining persons seeking salvation, and bap- 
tizing twenty-three believers. Some of them were gray- 
haired men, and others bright boys and girls. 

During these daily services I took opportunity to put a 
New Testament in the hand of every one who had none. I 
was sorry to see how many had no Bible — hundreds of them 

— and glad to see how eagerly they sought and read them. 
Two hundred copies of the Observer went into the hands and 
homes that never saw a religious newspaper, and hundreds of 
tracts and other good reading were gladly received. 

One old lady said to me : " Little Benny reads his Testa- 
ment all the time, and believes in it awfully." The ignor- 
ance of Scripture in some cases is most deplorable. One 
young woman, twenty-three years old, did not know who 
Jesus was, though she thought she had heard of him. Is not 
this a reproach on our churches in Kentucky ? — people per- 
ishing at our doors who never heard of a Saviour ! May 
such reproach soon cease. 

ORGANIZING A CHURCH. 

The Sabbath sun rose clear and cloudless ; after the big 
fog lifted itself from the deep valleys, and the people began 
to gather by 8 o'clock, and by 10 A. M. we had to enlarge 
the seating capacity of the tent. Hundreds came, some from 
other counties, and many walking long distances. The serv* 



238 THE SOUL WINNER. 

ices began at 9 A. M with a Sabbath School, the first prob- 
ably ever organized on this river. 

A large number of young people were taught by Messrs. 
Cockerham and Moore, assisted b> Ellen and Annie, our 
musicians, together with some good home talent. 

At 10 A. M. and 2 P. M. I preached. Several persons 
leceived Christ and I baptized some twelve more— one man 
seventy- eight years of age. After the service we organized a 
Presbyterian church, with fifty-two members. Four excel- 
lent men, the leading men for character and influence on the 
river, were elected, ordained and installed to be ruling elders, 
after the distinctive doctrines of the Presbyterian church had 
been stated and explained. On Saturday I had preached on 
baptism ; ever) body here has been taught to believe that im- 
mersion is scriptural baptism, and about all of religion Some 
fifty-two out of fifty-four who accepted Christ were well 
enough satisfied to enter the Presbyterian church. Enough 
money and work were subscribed to insure the building of a 
church on the site the big tent occupied, donated by a gen- 
erous member. This is a large subscription ($350) for peo- 
ple who are very poor in this world's goods, who seldom 
handle money. Arrangements were made to continue their 
Sabbath school regularly, and also to supply the church tem- 
porarily with preaching of the gospel. My time and strength 
being both exhausted, I was compelled to close the meeting, 
which I did most relunctantly. 

. The people earnestly desired it might continue. One 
bright lad who gave his heart to God wanted it to go on five 
months. But only in heaven — 

Congregations ne'er break up, 
id Sabbaths have no end. 



FROM THE QUICKSAND. 239 

So we quietly folded the big tent and the little organ, and 
on Monday morning bade the warm-hearted mountaineers 
good-bye, and took the wagon over the hills and rocks to- 
ward our home. 

This is the brief history of the organization of the Rous- 
seau Presbyterian church on the Quicksand. 

Its excellent elders are : Nimrod Mcintosh, Charles W. 
Minnix, Nathan H. Sallee and Green Hensley — all men of 
age, of sobriety and of good report. 

" Not unto us, O Lord, but unto thy name give glory 
for thy mercy, and for thy truth's sake." 

On Sunday, Oct. n, 1896, I dedicated the new church 
here, a beautiful house — the first ever built on this river. 
Rev. J. M. Little and Rev. Robt. A. Walton were present 
and rendered valuable assistance. 



240 THE SOUL WINNER. 



FROM THE CUMBERLAND MOUNTAINS. 



Whitesburg, Letcher County, ) 
Kentucky, May, 1896. / 

By direction of Presbytery I came here to try to organize 
a church. Though this town is in Kentucky, the best way 
for us to reach it is through Virginia. 

So, to avoid riding eighty miles over the mountains from 
Jackson, Kentucky, I concluded to ride thirty from Big S:one 
Gap, Virginia. 

I left my home on Monday morning and came by rail to 
Cumberland Gap, where I spent the night with clever 
Charley Fulkerson at his big hotel in Middlesborough. Here 
I met brother Henry Miller and family, all well and at work. 

Was glad to see signs of returning prosperity to this 
phenomenal, boomed town, and to know how courageously 
our church has weathered the financial storm. 

Tuesday morning, I took the 5 A. M. train for the 
" Double Tunnel" at Gilly, near Big Stone Gap, Virginia, 
and seventy miles above Cumberland Gap. 

Here, at 9 a. m., I took a horse for Whitesburg, Letcher 
county, Kentucky. My travelling companion and guide, 
was,:' Billy" Vermillion, on a little mule. 

Our route lay up Callahan Fork of Powell river, some 
ten miles, between the mountains, to the big coke ovens and 
coal mines at Pioneer, a new settlement at the foot of the Big 
Black Mountain, the highest range of the Cumberland, which 
here divides Virginia from Kentucky. 

On our way up Callahan, Billy showed me where a big 



THE CUMBERLAND MOUNTAINS. 241 

rock had mashed three men and they had to "rake them 
up," when they got the rock off, by blasting it. I thought of 
that day when men will " call upon the rocks and mountains 
to fall upon them." 

We found the Big Black Mountain well named. It was 
both big and black. 

The forests at the foot were green with spring foliage, 
but on top the mountain was dark and naked as winter, 
though the soil is a rich black loam out of which grow giants 
of the forest, immense sugar trees, oak, walnut, poplar, 
chestnut, etc. 

We rested our exhausted horses on top of the big moun- 
tain, and lay down on a carpet of beautiful blue grass, under 
the biggest sugar trees I ever saw. It looked strange to see 
such a growth on top of such a mountain, thousands of feet 
high. 

"Sweet fields beyond the swelling flood 

Stand dressed in living green ; 
So to the Jews old Canaan stood, 

While Jordan rolled between." 

I am not sure that Jordan was any harder toad to travel 
than up the " Big Black." It is probably the same road. 

Here lives old Dan Richmond, a former slave of Gen- 
eral Jonathan Richmond near Big Stone Gap. He owns a 
big farm on top of this mountain, (said to be the best in the 
county), and here has raised blue grass, Indian corn and a 
decent family, in spite of the frost and the bears. 

Everywhere beautiful wild flowers redeemed the desola- 
tion of the wilderness, recalling that beautiful verse in Gray's 
Elegy, 



242 THE SOUL WINNEE. 

" Full many a gem of purest rays serene, 

The dark unfathomed caves of ocean bear ; 
Full many a flower is born to blush unseen, 
And waste its sweetness on the desert air. 

And I could not help thinking how many immortal 
flowers were left uncared for and unsaved in these wild, 
waste mountains. I saw them everywhere. 

I met a bare-headed, bare-footed girl, with a beautiful 
face and form, carrying a big bucket of water to an humble 
cabin home. These great mountains are filled with these 
immortelles, who must live somewhere, when even their 
hoary hills are passed away. 

To save them God gave His Son and the church should 
give her sons and her treasures. 

The trail led us down the Black Mountain, as nearly 
perpendicular as a man could walk or a mule could slide. At 
the foot we struck the head waters of the Poor Fork of Cum- 
berland river. (These people have a genius for giving ap- 
propriate names.) 

Here we stopped to rest and feed our horses at Wils. 

Hawleys (or Sturgills,) who keeps his hogs belled and sells 
his corn at 50 cts., a bushel. 

A man was plowing on the mountain, with a big pistol 
buckled around him. He was probably expecting a revenue 
officer. We explained that we were not in that "service." 

A few miles down one fork and up another brought us 
to the Cumberland Mountain, (also called Pine and Laurel 
mountain.) It ought to be called also Stone Mountain for it 
is a mass of stones from top to bottom. While not quite so 
big as Big Black, it is big enough, and bad to climb on ac- 
count of the multitude of stones which fill the narrow gully, 
that is called a road. 



THE CUMBERLAND MOUNTAINS. 243 

I once rode a mule to the top of Pike's Peak and I don't 
know which is the worse road. 

At the foot of Pine Mountain we came upon the Cowan 
branch of the Kentucky river, and crossing another mountain 
we reached Whitesburg about sundown, sore, tired and with 
the headache. 

Am glad I am alive. I found Whitesburg but little 
changed since I was here in the army over thirty years ago. 

It is the same little village of one narrow, dusty street, 
some two dozen houses and about a hundred people, in a 
narrow valley on the headwaters of the Kentucky river, 
within eight miles of the Virginia state line which is on top of 
the Cumberland mountains. 

Though it is more than fifty years old it has no church, 
or academy, or tailor, saddler, shoemaker, or blacksmith, 
one doctor and no dentist. 

It seems to have grown only in years. I have found 
only two men here whom I knew in the army. The legions 
of brave men I once saw here have struck their tents and 
crossed over the river to rest. " Caudill's Army" and 
" Marshall's Men" have followed their captains to the great 
review of the " Grand Army" of the " Lord of Hosts." 

There was no place to preach but in a little old court 
house, which our Baptist and Methodist brethren have used 
for half a century. Brother Deggendorf, of the Louisville 
seminary and two Mormon elders from Salt Lake City, 
occupied the pulpit on Sunday, one in the morning and two 
at night. 

We explained that we were not of the same faith. 

I preached on Tuesday night in the little court house to 
a few dozen people. The people of this country are of the 



244 THE SOUL WINNER. 

Hardshell Baptist persuasion, though some are getting softer 
than others. There is one small Southern Methodist church 
in the county, and one lone Presbyterian member of the 
Northern persuasion, five miles from town. 

We felt somewhat lonesome here. But the Lord had 
promised to go with us " to the end of the world," and as we 
had reached that place we claimed that promise. 

On Wednesday morning I preached to two women, 
six children and eight men. It was hard work. Twice 
every day since, we have been trying to pull up " the steepest 
place on the hill of Zion " I ever found. 

The congregations increased until the little court house 
was uncomfortably filled. 

On Thursday the presiding elder and circuit rider of the 
Methodist church arrived to hold their quarterly meeting. 

I knew nothing of their coming, nor they of mine. We 
found them both earnest, good men and divided the time 
until the aext Tuesday. On Sunday we celebrated the com- 
munion and ten people sat down to the table and two of 
them were from a distance. 

Only ten in a court house full ! It was inexpressibly 
sad. I had never seen the like before. There are not a 
dozen members of all churches in this town. 

Our Methodist brother was a good singer, though some 
of his preaching was "advanced" beyond anything I have 
ever found in the Bible. It probably suited some "new 
women," and others with new "views." 

But I am a married man, and have learned to modestly 
differ from people that I love. So we differed, and loved, I 
hope. (I ought to say my wife is not a "new woman" 
though she is not old.) 



THE CUMBERLAND MOUNTAINS. 245 

I preached twice daily to growing congregations until 
Thursday night. 

The Mormons returned the day the Methodist brother 
left. I didn't divide the time with them though they are 
great ladies men. 

They listened and scattered their literature about town. 
So the tares and the wheat are still sown together and are 
growing together. 

Thank God for the wheat. Not much of it has been 
sown here. 

On Thursday morning I preached on the distinctive doc- 
trinesof the Presbyterian church, including the mode of bap- 
tism, which is the distinguished and distinguishing doctrine up 
here. 

The court house was crowded and they listened an hour 
and a half, and expressed themselves satisfied; (probably 
with the length, though some Baptists agreed with us and 
united with us.) 

During the week, in spite of serious obstacles and inter, 
ruptions, some eighteen persons publicly confessed their faith 
in Christ. 

I appointed Thursday evening as the time for the organ- 
ization of the first Presbyterian church of the county. Just 
before the hour, Dr. Witherspoon gladdened our hearts by 
riding up. He had ridden across the mountains from Big 
Stone Gap. 

I always esteemed the doctor very highly ; but the man 
who crosses the Big Black twice to preach the gospel here, 
has my profoundest admiration. He has it, and deserves it 
(though he went back another way.) 

His coming was most providential, for my engagements 



246 THE SOUL WINNER. 

at home compelled me to leave the next morning. He will 
remain until next week. 

We organized the church in the presence of the court 
house crowded to the windows, with an eager and curious 
congregation. Of the eighteen persons who expressed a 
hope of salvation, thirteen cast their lot with the Presbyterian 
church, and eight of these I baptised. The church. was then 
duly organized, with Mr. J. W. Adams for ruling elder, and 
Mr. J. H. Gibson for deacon; both excellent men. A num- 
ber of others expressed their purpose of joining our church, 
and a liberal subscription had been made to erect a nice house 
of worship on a lot presented to us. 

These hardy mountaineers are among the finest speci- 
mens of manhood, with strong minds and bodies; and only 
need conversion and culture to make them fine specimens of 
Christain activity. Long training in extreme views of God's 
sovereignty, and man's inability, has made them the hardest 
people to reach I have ever known. It is humanly impossible 
to reach the man with both a hard heart and a hard head. 
But God can do it, and does it with plain preaching and 
earnest prayer. 

I found a fine lot of young people at Whitesburg; a 
number of these joined our church, and they are the hope of 
the future. Christian people can do no better with God's tal- 
ents in their hands than to employ them in this great work of 
helping these people to a better life. 

Brother Deggendorf, a student of the seminary at Louis- 
ville, will spend the summer here, and no better man could 
have been selected. He was here awhile last summer and is 
not a stranger. 



THE CUMBERLAND MOUNTAINS. 247 

Brother J. E. Stevenson, now of South Carolina, spent 
a year here sowing the "seed of the Kingdom." Dr. Isaac 
McElroy, of Lexington, and Rev. R. A. Walton also made 
them a visit and preached faithfully. Dr. Witherspoon has 
made several visits, and Dr. Jas. P. Hendricks, so they ought 
not to be ignorant of the way of life. May God persuade 
them all to walk in it. 

At six o'clock Friday morning I started back across the 
mountains alonejo Big Stone Gap, and home. 

After riding and climbing about thirty miles, I reached 
this little city of magnificent scenery at 5 o'clock in the even- 
ing, to take the train at seven o'clock to my own home and 
people, which I reached Saturday morning. 

That this simple narrative of an humble effort to win 
souls for Christ, may inspire many others to go and do like- 
wise, is the prayer of 

Edward O. Guerrant. 



248 THE SOUL WINNER 



FROM THE LOST CREEK. 



Mouth of Lost Creek, on Troublesome, Breathitt County, 1 
Kentucky. July 23rd, 1896. J 

Dear Presbyterian: —As neither yourself or readers have 
probably- ever been in this neighborhood, and would not ob- 
ject to read about it. and as there may be some such place in 
Missouri (and I suspect there is), I will send you a line to en- 
list your sympathy and stimulate your zeal for those who 
dwell in the land of the Troublesome. 

How significant those names and how naturally and in- 
evitably they are associated! Lost Creek on the Trouble- 
some ! How many thousands live on these sorrowful waters 
who do not know whence they came nor whither they go. 
Bat as this is not to be a sermon but a letter, I will proceed. 

We left home on Monday, July 13th, for the mountains 
of Eastern Kentucky. The first day brought us to Jackson, 
one hundred miles southeast of Lexington. On Tuesday 
morning, ten miles up the Kentucky river from Jackson, 
brought us to the mouth of the Troublesome, a stream fifty- 
two miles long. A mile up this swollen river brought us to 
the mouth of Lost Creek, where we pitched the big tent, in 
the rain, to preach the Gospel. 

A flood had just devastated the Lost Creek for twenty 
miles, washing everything movable away and drowning the 
teacher at its mouth. The rain continued almost daily for 
ten days, so the ground under the tent never got dry. 

Even the frogs sought refuge in the houses, and things 
that could not swim had a hard time to get about. Sev^n msn 



FKOM THE LOST CKEEK. 249 

and seven women and a score of school children made up 

our first congregation. The girls and weather prospects all 

looked blue, but God smiled away the clouds and brought the 
people to church. 

My daughter, Grace, and her companion, Miss Nannie 
McCauley, from Troy, made sweet music on the little organ. 
Harry Cockerham and Elias Moore, our mountain boys, 
helped with the seating and the singing. A poor fellow died 
of typhoid fever near by, and I preached his funeral in the 
yard to a big crowd. So "'Billy " Campbell's death, I trust, 
was a means of grace to some of his neighbors, 

Few people in this country are members of any church ; 
those who are being mostly Hardshell Baptists — clever and 
narrow. Only one lone Presbyterian breaks the monotony 
on Troublesome. He is faithful Nathan Sallee, who joined on 
the Quicksand last summer and now lives here. 

"Colonel" and "Dock" Noble, whom I found most 
excellent and well informed men, had to quit preaching in 
the Baptist church, to which they belonged, because they be- 
lieved in and practiced scriptural baptism by sprinkling. 

Owing to the roads and the weather we had to hold both 
services by daylight. So we begin at 9:30 o'clock in the 
morning and closed between 4 and 5 in the afternoon, with a 
recess for dinner. During these long hours for ten days these 
patient people sat on most uncomfortable seats of rough 
planks to hear the Gospel. 

They were as well behaved as any city congregation, ex- 
cept the dogs and babies, which occasianally raised a dis- 
turbance. But as the boys and mothers could not come with- 
out them, we "put up" with a few dozen for ten days. You 
may not appreciate the fact, but this is a triumph of grace. 



250 THE SOUL WINNER. 

The man who has not attained it had better keep out of the 
mountains. 

Some generous friends in New York had sent me some 
250 Bibles and testaments, which I gave to all who had none. 
Thousands of tracts and newspapers (the Observer, etc.) were 
gladly received. Few people here ever get a newspaper, 
especially a religious paper. 

I made all who received a Bible or Testament promise to 
preserve it and read it daily. They received them gladly, 
and I believe will read them diligently. My heart was moved 
when I saw how many whole families were without the Word 
of God, and how eagerly they sought it; some of them com- 
ing miles over rough mountain roads for a Testament. 

The congregation increased, until Sunday the big tent 
was filled ; and after preaching I gave the first invitation for 
all who had received Jesus and would publicly confess Him 
to come forward ; and over one hundred came up, not count- 
ing memhers of the church. 

It was the day of Pentecost on Troublesome. None had 
ever seen the like before. Most of them were men and 
women, and some well stricken in years. I noticed the ab- 
sence of children. Probably they could not yet understand 
the plainest preaching, not being accustomed to it. The 
little school house here affords the only place of worship, 
with no Sabbath school, or prayer-meeting, or regular preach- 
ing for years. 

The weather continued fearfully hot, with daily rains until 
Thursday. I had set that day to discuss baptism, as no meet- 
ing here is complete without it. It constitutes the bulk of 
most of them. The crowd filled every plank and many sat 
on the ground. The good Baptist preachers and people were 



FROM THE LOST CREEK, 251 

t 

present in force, with a sprinkle of Methodists and my lone 
Presbyterian. Brother Shewmaker, pastor of the Presby- 
teiian church at Jackson, and Brother Mann, of the Metho- 
dist church there, came up to-day. 

The result of the service to-day was twenty-seven con- 
fessions of Christ; thirteen united with the Presbyterian 
church, eight with the Methodist, and six with the Baptist. 
Brother Shewmaker baptized the Presbyterians ; I baptized 
the Methodists, at Brother Mann's request, as he was not or- 
dained, and I recommended the Baptist brethren to their 
own preachers. 

Most of these people are hereditary Baptists and are te- 
nacious of their inheritance, but their ideas of baptism some- 
times need reformation. Aunt Ferraby Noble had to be im- 
mersed twice, because she said the water in Leatherwood 
creek was not deep enough, so she had it done over and bet- 
ter in Troublesome. 

But God never made cleverer people, and they deserve 
better treatment than they have ever received from their more 
fortunate brethren in the Blue Grass. It is a privilege and 
pleasure to preach to people who walk miles to church, and 
sit on rough boards for four hours a day without a murmur. 

It was a sorrow to leave them at last, and know that tens 
of thousands around them and beyond them in these intermi- 
nable mountains were as hungry as they and even more des- 
titute. It ought to move a heart of stone. Will it move the 
heart of Kentucky and Missouri? 

My own duties at home to my church compelled me to 
return on Friday, the 24th, but not until We had raised a 
subscription of four hundred dollars to build a church here, 
on a nice lot given for the purpose. 



252 THE SOUL WINNER. 

On Tuesday Brother C. W. Maxwell, of Mt. Sterling, 
and a party of ladies from Lexington, made us glad as they 
passed on their way to Hazard to help Brother Wallin, our 
missionary in Perry county. I pray that God will 'multiply 
the number and zeal of those who have " the spirit of mis- 
sions" for these perishing people. 

I am amazed at the indifference of Christians to the dire- 
ful fate of so many thousands of their neighbors, whom they 
are commanded to love as themselves. Their sorrowful desti- 
tution, their unspeakable value to God, their willingness to 
hear and accept God's Word and way of Salvation, should 
move every human heart that is not "dead in trespasses and 
sins." 

After all the faithful work done by the Synod — and it 
has been a great and blessed work — we are only beginning. 
Our scattered churches on the borders of the mountains are 
only so many ''light- houses on the shores of a continent of 
darkness." 

We ought to have twenty churches in Breathitt county j 
and we have four. 

I don't know how many of us can stand the test of the 
Judgment Day, when the King comes to inquire of our treat- 
ment of the "least of His brethren," who are His represen- 
tatives now on earth. 

May God help us to do better. 

Your brother and servant, 

Edward O. Guerrant. 






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